Strangles Confirmed in Neighboring Florida Counties

Horses in St. Lucie and Martin counties in Florida are positive for strangles and are under official quarantine.
Horses in St. Lucie and Martin counties in Florida are positive for strangles and are under official quarantine.
Horses in St. Lucie and Martin counties in Florida are positive for strangles and are under official quarantine. | Wikimedia Commons

Strangles has been confirmed in two neighboring Florida counties.

In St. Lucie County, two horses (an 18-year-old gelding and a 23-year-old gelding) were confirmed positive on May 1. Both presented with abscessing at a vaccination injection site. Three additional horses on the property are exposed.

In Martin County, a 7-year-old mare was confirmed positive on May 5 after developing signs on May 3, including a ruptured submandibular abscess. Fifteen additional horses are exposed.

All positive horses are now under official quarantine. There have now been 16 confirmed cases of strangles in Florida in 2023. 

EDCC Health Watch is an Equine Network marketing program that utilizes information from the Equine Disease Communication Center (EDCC) to create and disseminate verified equine disease reports. The EDCC is an independent nonprofit organization that is supported by industry donations in order to provide open access to infectious disease information.

About Strangles

Strangles in horses is an infection caused by Streptococcus equi subspecies equi and spread through direct contact with other equids or contaminated surfaces. Horses that aren’t showing clinical signs can harbor and spread the bacteria, and recovered horses remain contagious for at least six weeks, with the potential to cause outbreaks long-term.

Infected horses can exhibit a variety of clinical signs:

  • Fever
  • Swollen and/or abscessed lymph nodes
  • Nasal discharge
  • Coughing or wheezing
  • Muscle swelling
  • Difficulty swallowing

Veterinarians diagnose horses using polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing with either a nasal swab, wash, or an abscess sample, and they treat most cases based on clinical signs, implementing antibiotics for severe cases. Overuse of antibiotics can prevent an infected horse from developing immunity. Most horses make a full recovery in three to four weeks.

A vaccine is available but not always effective. Biosecurity measures of quarantining new horses at a facility and maintaining high standards of hygiene and disinfecting surfaces can help lower the risk of outbreak or contain one when it occurs.

Brought to you by Boehringer Ingelheim, The Art of the Horse

SHARE THIS STORY
CATEGORIES
TAGS
RELATED ARTICLES
Caballo con perfil recortado sobre fondo negro
2 EIA Cases Confirmed in Canada
White horse eye
2 Texas Horses Positive for EIA
Horse on meadow
Pennsylvania Horse Positive for WNV
Silhouette of a beautiful Arabian horse against sun shining thro
Tennessee Filly Positive for EEE
EDCC HEALTH ALERTS
Don’t miss an important EDCC Health Alert! Get alerts delivered straight to your inbox by signing up for Practical Horseman’s newsletter.

"*" indicates required fields

Name*
Country*

Additional Offers

Additional Offers
This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.