"It's like going into work, not having a job and being laid off. There's no way of racing; no way of making an income."
The outbreak of equine herpes virus (EHV-1) that's affected horses in many states and forced quarantines at barns across the U.S. is gaining mainstream media attention. On Friday, Cincinnati's Fox19 News profiled the fairgrounds at Warren County in Lebanon, Ohio -- 15 minutes east of Miami Valley Raceway. The facility and its nearly 450 horses remain under quarantine after a EHV-1 positive horse raced at The Meadows as well as Miami Valley Gaming on January 13 and 24. Testing confirms EHV-1 but the horse was showing signs of illness as of Tuesday (Feb. 6).
On Saturday, the Oregon Department of Agriculture has released the quarantine for the wild type EHV-1 positive horse at the Portland Meadows racetrack. The affected horse has made an impressive recovery and now tests negative for EHV-1.