Blea on Del Mar’s Churchill Shippers, Wakanaka Scratched from Matriarch

[Wandering Eyes]

In the midst of the Equine Herpesvirus (EHV-1) outbreak at Churchill Downs, Del Mar had accepted three shippers from the Louisville track Tuesday, Nov. 29, the same day a horse at Churchill first showed symptoms of the contagious disease. One of the horses, Bill Mott's MGSW Wakanaka (Ire) (Power {GB}), had a suspicious test and will not be permitted to start in Sunday's GI Matriarch S. She was 5-1 on the morning line.

Dr. Jeff Blea, the equine medical director for the California Horse Racing Board (CHRB), released the following statement Saturday:

“Three horses arrived at the Del Mar Race Track from Churchill Downs on Tuesday, Nov. 29. Due to the recent EHV-1 issue identified at Churchill Downs, the horses were placed in a quarantine barn with biosecurity measures implemented upon arrival, which continue to remain in place. Since their arrival, all three horses remain healthy and show no clinical signs of illness. Furthermore, bloodwork has been and continues to remain normal.

“The horses were tested for EHV-1 at UC Davis and all horses were negative for EHV-1 in blood. However, one horse, Wakanaka, was mildly positive on a nasal swab sample with a very low viral load. The viral load was too weak to differentiate between neuropathogenic and non-neuropathogenic EHV-1. This is only one test at a single time point, so we will continue to monitor the situation. Out an abundance of caution, Wakanaka will not be allowed to compete in the Dec. 4 Matriarch S. as planned.”

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