A fatal horse disease has new SC cases. York, Lancaster experts on how to stop it.
A deadly horse disease hasn’t yet made its way to York County, and former Clover mayor Donnie Burris intends to keep it that way.
“It definitely would be a concern,” Burris said of the mosquito-bourne Eastern Equine Encephalitis, “because in most cases it’s fatal for horses.”
In late August, the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control announced 11 horses in eight South Carolina counties tested positive for EEE from July 10 to Aug. 21. Those horses were in Aiken, Berkeley, Colleton, Florence, Horry, Jasper, Lexington and Marion counties.
It’s rare, but humans can get the disease that’s transmitted by black-tailed mosquitos and some birds in forested, freshwater swamp areas. It’s more common among horses, where it has a 90% fatality rate according to DHEC.
The virus is most common during spring and summer. The virus doesn’t transmit directly from horses to people, or horses to mosquitoes. An infected horse often takes two to five days to show symptoms and can show stumbling or poor coordination, inability to rise, paralysis and other difficulties.
“The black-tailed mosquito is not often targeted for control because this species is not a major nuisance to people and due to the inaccessible nature of many freshwater swamps that makes ground-based control of larvae and adults difficult,” state public health entomologist Chris Evans with DHEC’s Bureau of Environmental Health Services said in a Thursday release.
Efforts to curtail the mosquitoes are made when populations are detected in an area, Evans said.
The virus can cause fever, malaise, intense headache, muscle ache, nausia and vomiting in people. Symptoms typically emerge in three to 10 days from infection. Some nuerological symptoms can include meningitis, encephalitis, seizures and coma.
A third or more of people who contract the virus and display symptoms will die, but 96% of people infected never show symptoms.
“Despite the cooler weather of the approaching fall season, residents still need to protect themselves from mosquito bites,” Evans said. “The risk for EEE and West Nile virus transmission to people is always greater toward the end of mosquito season, even after extended periods of cold weather.”
According to DHEC, fewer than 160 cases in humans have been reported nationwide the past 35 years. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data doesn’t show a human case in South Carolina since at least 2010. Yet hundreds of cases have been reported in South Carolina.
CDC data shows about half the counties in South Carolina reported at least one case in 2013. Between five and 10 counties per year reported them in following years. Chesterfield County, immediately east of Lancaster, reported cases each year from 2016 to 2018. Kershaw County, immediately south of Lancaster, reported cases each year from 2012 to 2016.
The good news for horse owners is, routine vaccines and boosters from veterinarians should prevent horses from getting EEE.
“It is not brand new,” said Teri Currie, owner of third-generation Van Wyck farm Belfair Farms Riding Facility. “It tends to be seasonal, with mosquito season.”
Currie bought property for what is now a 23-stall facility back in 2003. Lancaster County has several riding, training or boarding facilities. So do parts of York County. They range from extensive horse programs at the Anne Springs Close Greenway in Fort Mill to rural areas where owners may have just a horse or two. Burris and friends who rode together for years started what became the Apple Pie Gang that travels, camps and rides together.
They’ve added members.
“Over 2,000 now,” Burris said. “We started this group with about eight people.”
Horse owners tend to gather, he said, which can create viral outbreak concerns from shared water to feed buckets. Apart from vaccinations, Burris said there are measures horse owners can take even on group rides to avoid EEE.
“The best way to prevent that is to try to keep your distance from other horses,” he said.
While some tri-county farms and stables date back decades, there seems to be a growing presense of area horses.
“There really is a lot, a lot around York and Clover, and even around Rock Hill,” Burris said. “You’ve got people like me that’ve fooled with it my whole life. But there’s a lot of new people getting into it.”
Currie said places like Camden have long been known for horses. There also is nearby Union County, North Carolina that Currie said ranks at the top of that state for horse owners. The world class Tryon International Equestrian Center isn’t a far drive from the York and Chester counties lines.
“It has spilled over,” Currie said of interest in horses. “There is a very big, strong horse presence here.”
Currie said area horse owners should make sure EEE prevention is included in the vaccinations given to horses. Vaccinations from a veterinarian, she said, typically would have it but some others may not.
“It’s a terrible, terrible illness too,” Currie said. “It’s so important that if you’re going to a new area or having horses brought it, to make sure horses have their vaccines.”
Along with recreational group rides like Burris hosts, another type of gathering this time of year can bring many horses together at once.
“The horse show industry is having very large horse shows,” Currie said. “They’re always concerned about outbreaks of this.”
Sometimes shows require proof of vaccination, she said.
Burris, who rode a couple of hours Thursday morning before the weather got hot, said horses are an investment for many people. It can cost $200 a month to keep a horse, more in the winter when grass doesn’t grow as readily. Yet money isn’t the main cost with EEE. For people who love horses, it’s about protecting the animals.
“Most of us are aware of it,” Burris said. “It can be deadly for horses, so you want to be careful.”
