After a thorough inspection of the barn area at Gulfstream Park, Florida state veterinary officials on Tuesday ruled that a minimum 21-day quarantine will be in place for a single barn after a horse tested positive for the Equine Herpesvirus (EHV) over the weekend. The quarantine applies to Barn 21 only and during this period, all affected horses will receive daily veterinary inspection and will not be permitted to race.
Horses shipping in during the quarantine period, including those for Saturday's GI Pegasus World Cup, will be exclusively stabled at designated ship-in barns. The ship-in barns are a half-mile from Barn 21, which is located at the opposite end of the Gulfstream Park facility.
“We thank the Florida State Veterinary officials for their quick response and for acknowledging the immediate measures taken by our team at Gulfstream Park to identify and contain the recent positive EHV. I would also like to thank them for the ongoing support of the horsemen, backstretch personnel and our team as we continue to safely race and train,” Dr. Dionne Benson, Chief Veterinary Officer for 1/ST Racing said.
Quarantine protocols include:
-Installation of a perimeter fencing barrier around Barn 21
-Daily veterinary inspection of Barn 21 with twice-daily logged temperature checks
-Strict entry into Barn 21 regulated by security
-Access to Barn 21 strictly limited to essential/necessary personnel only
-Biosecurity protocols required at exit:
-Footbaths changed regularly
-Grooms, trainers, exercise riders and farriers must leave premises after being in Barn 21
-Veterinarians must wear Tyvek suits, plastic boots, and gloves when in Barn 21
-Any equipment must be sterilized prior to leaving quarantine area
-Barn 21 quarantine will be in effect for a minimum of 21-days (no racing permitted)
-Quarantine horses will train separately and access the racetrack through a separate path
-All ship-in horses for racing for the duration of the quarantine period will be stabled at the designated ship-in barns
-Gulfstream Park will notify relevant stakeholders once the quarantine period has been lifted
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