Gulfstream Park quarantined two barns after a horse died Tuesday, and veterinary officials are working to determine what caused the death.
Dr. Dionne Benson, chief veterinary officer for The Stronach Group, said in a statement that officials were notified a horse at Gulfstream had "fell ill while exhibiting neurological symptoms and was humanely euthanized. Out of caution, the barns that have been affected have been quarantined. More information to follow when necropsy results are in."
Later on Wednesday, Benson told HRN they had received "several reports that the horse was either loose in the morning and got into another barn, or the horse was out loose on the track and injured itself and then went to a barn that was not its own."
She said she could not identify the horse.
With increasing reports of equine herpesvirus, including at TSG's Laurel Park and Pimlico, Benson said officials need to rule out the possibility of EHV as a cause of death.
"Because we had some conflicting reports, and because we didn't have real-time knowledge of the horse getting injured in the morning, and we were seeing the horse at 7:00 at night without anyone saying this horse had potential issues, we have to treat it as if it's a potentially a risk to the health of the horses on the backside."
Laurel Park and Pimlico have limited movement of horses in and out of the tracks because of the EHV outbreak.
She said samples have been submitted for necropsy and analysis. "According to the state, they anticipate that we should have results by 5 p.m.," Benson said. Those results likely would at least determine whether the cause of death was EHV. They might not indicate whether the cause of death was trauma or another factor, she said.
The Gulfstream Park website lists 13 horses that have been scratched by stewards from races Wednesday, though it could not be determined whether they are stabled in the quarantined barns.
