Agriculture officials in Arkansas and Louisiana have warned veterinarians to watch for signs of a potentially fatal horse disease, pigeon fever, because of drought conditions this year. Although the disease has nothing to do with pigeons, it is often called pigeon fever because of the basketball-sized abscesses that occur in the chest and abdomen.
Pesky flies = Infectious horse diseases
Cases of Pigeon fever, also known as dry-land strangles, seem to spike in dry weather and droughts and pose a serious threat to horse health.
© 2012 by Carien Schippers
Veterinary health officials throughout the United states are warning horse owners about the potential for more cases of pigeon fever, also referred to as dry-land strangles, this year because cases of the disease appear to spike in dry, hot weather.
Pigeon fever has been reported in at least a dozen states in the past decade. Louisiana usually has fewer than three cases per year, but the state veterinary lab confirmed 33 during last year's drought, said Sam Irwin, spokesman for the Department of Agriculture and Forestry. And, from what veterinarians have told her, the number may be far greater with perhaps as many as 300 cases according to Louisiana State University veterinarian, Rebecca S. McConnico.
Earlier this year, The Texas Animal Health Commission released an update on "pigeon fever," otherwise known as dry-land distemper or dry-land strangles, in response to an increase in calls and questions about the disease.
"Pigeon fever," which causes abscesses and swelling in a horse's pectoral region, is caused by the bacteria Corynebacterium pseudotuberculosis. The disease is most commonly seen in dry areas of the western United States but can be found in other parts of the country as well if conditions are favorable.
The Texas Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory had more than 350 positive cultures for the disease-causing bacteria in 2011 compared with fewer than 100 cases each year from 2005 to 2010. Additionally, the Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital at Texas A&M diagnosed more than four times as many cases in 2011 as compared with 2010.
The outbreak of cases has been attributed to the fact that C. pseudotuberculosis thrives in dry soil. In addition, the fly population grows during hot weather and since flies carry the disease and are crucial to transmission, fly control is critical to prevent more cases of the disease.
Insect control measures should be carefully followed to limit flies and other pests, and horses should be examined daily for wounds or abrasions that could become portals of entry for bacteria.
Elective surgical procedures that require opening the skin should be scheduled for times when the disease is least likely to be active and when insect activity is at its lowest point.