11/20/2025
ā With everything going on in TX now is a good time for an EHV refresher ā
Equine Herpes Virus (EHV-1) & Equine Herpesvirus Myeloencephalopathy (EHM) Information ā EHV-1 is spread by contact ā keep your horses at home!
Direct contact between horses, people touching horses with contaminated hands, or going into stalls with contaminated boots, contact with contaminated equipment/ tack. Therefore, limiting contact between horses is crucial and keeping yourself and your tack/ equipment clean is important.
This is NOT a time to share with your neighbors! To disinfect, remove any organic material (shavings, hay, manure) and clean using 5 tablespoons of bleach mixed in 1 gallon of water (1 part bleach to 9 parts water), sanitize hands often and disinfect your boots if going in multiple horse's stalls.
Take your horseās temperature twice a day and keep a record so you notice any changes. Anything above 101.5F call your veterinarian! Fever is typically the first sign so keeping track will help you notice changes early. ļæ½The incubation period (time between exposure to the virus and the horse showing clinical signs) for EHV is as short as 24 hours and as long as 21 days. Typically, horses show signs of illness 4 to 14 days post exposure.
Horses can have EHV and show no clinical signs aka be carriers of the virus. EHV can turn into EHM. This is why biosecurity is so important. Another horse could look perfectly normal and still get your horse very sick! This is a time to use caution and be smart!ļæ½ļæ½EHV & EHM are not viruses to be taken lightly ā these can kill your horse, so letās all make good choices
Signs of EHV include fever (re**al temperature greater than 101.5Ā°F), coughing and/or nasal discharge, lethargy or decreased appetite.
Signs of EHM are acute neurological issues; not being able to walk or get up easily, appearing disoriented, acting weak or tired, trouble urinating, lethargy or decreased appetite.
If your horse displays any of these symptoms contact your veterinarian immediately and quarantine that horse.
While the vaccination does not prevent EHM, it can reduce viral shedding which decreases barn spread which is helpful for herd immunity.
The booster helps decrease viremia, meaning less severe disease and less transmission. The vaccination does NOT stop a horse already incubating EHV-1 from developing signs and therefore does not decrease the neurological risk. ā
