Just to be clear, I do not blame the barn for how long it took, No idea what barn it is, but it sounds like they’ve done the right thing. I blame the state of MD. With spring activities starting up, that is a long time to delay informing horse owners about a very serious potential safety risk to their horses, especially knowing what’s happening in CA.
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Do you know how they possible might have been exposed?
I do not know that level of detail. As I do not have a horse there I am only receiving second hand updates.
What I can venture to guess - as a lesson barn, I can imagine that they have countless riders who come and go daily and may ride at other barns too. Hard to know if the exposure was from a location where the horse/horses were in the past 14 days or if it came in on contaminated equipment or boots. Tough tough situation all around.
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Yup, heard the same from vets re: the Montgomery County barn. They reported immediately and were upset that the state vet took days to announce. My barn just closed our first h/j show of the season taking place this weekend to outside horses, but I’m sure other barns in the area will continue on with events as usual since this took so long to get out and they may not hear/see in time. Or not realize how serious it is and what precautions need to be taken.
Thanks
For others in MD, Meadowbrook Stables has now shared information on their Facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/meadowbrookstablesMD/posts/2661709197307461
It appears they have taken this seriously, and followed all of the proper protocols. I encourage local folks to support them and thank them for their efforts to keep this contained.
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It’s important to remember that there wasn’t necessarily exposure. Most horses are carriers and can start shedding at any time.
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Another boarder’s vet was at my barn on Weds and said Hansen Dam has another potential positive, too. Very scary.
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This email just came from USEF:
EHV-1 Update: Extension of Recommended Caution for California Equine Events
From the US Equestrian Communications Department
Lexington, Ky . - The California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) has issued an Extension of Recommended Caution for California Equine Events . The California State Veterinarian recommends that all equine events of any discipline continue to be postponed through March 31, and all non-essential horse movements also be postponed at least through March 31. In line with this extension, USEF-licensed competitions in California scheduled to take place during this window have taken the following actions:
March 26-27 Dressage at Southern California Equestrian Cancelled
March 24-27 Rancho California AHA Annual Spring Postponed until June
March 31-April 3 Galway Downs International Horse Trials Requested FEI approval to move to April 1-3
USEF applauds the efforts of competition management to prioritize horse and safety welfare during this important timeframe. USEF will continue to work closely with the CDFA, competition organizers, and participants to manage the EHV-1 situation in CA and provide updates to our membership. The information provided is based on information available to USEF at the time of distribution.
USEF recommends the following requirements and best practices for biosecurity are implemented on showgrounds. Competition Managers may require additional protocols.
| • | Check and record temperatures twice daily and post on stall door | |
|---|---|---|
| — | — | |
| • | Any suspicion of illness in horses, including a temperature over 101.5°F, should be immediately reported to the show office and veterinarian. | |
| • | Immediately isolate and/or quarantine any horse exhibiting symptoms of illness | |
| • | DO NOT travel to another competition for 14 days | |
| • | Avoid animal-to-animal contact | |
| • | Do not share equipment between horses. IF YOU MUST SHARE, scrub and clean equipment with detergent and dry completely between shared use. | |
| • | When filling water buckets, DO NOT dip the end of the hose in each bucket. Hold the hose above the water when filling. | |
| • | Wash/sanitize hands thoroughly before and after direct horse contact | |
| • | Limit human-horse contact | |
| • | Because humans can be a means of disease transmission, avoid moving between barns unless absolutely necessary |
If you have questions on the USEF protocols, please email USEF at EHVhelp@usef.org. For additional information, please refer to the California Department of Food and Agricultureand Equine Disease Communication Center websites.
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Good that USEF is following CDFA guidelines. Would be nice if others did.
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Thank you @Highflyer1 for taking the words right out of my mouth.
It is NOT just about horses (or horse people/ trailers etc) moving. EHV outbreaks also correlate to the stress on horses, and combining too many stressful events together can cause a horse to shed virus, whether it shows respiratory or fever sx or neuro sx or is asymptomatic.
Again, this is an endemic herpesvirus disease of equines. It is more like chickenpox / shingles in humans - with an added respiratory component and potentially neurological sx. All horses including horses that never leave the property could start shedding EHV at any time if their body gets stressed enough.
Maybe we need mindfulness/ meditation/ stress relief training for both horse people and our horses (any horse will tell you - their stress relief is being allowed to be a horse: grazing, time with friends, rest, exercise in turnout at their decision).
The comparisons to covid on social media are not helping horse owners understand EHV, in my opinion. We are all stressed or and worried about this. Let’s not give ourselves shingles!
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Can anyone explain this requested date change of just one day ?
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Because April 1 is after March 31. And March 31 is the end of the restriction as posted elsewhere in the post you quoted part of.
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Good question, and while Peggy answered it directly, it still doesn’t make sense. Galway had been closed to outside horses all this time, but I heard they just opened up. Seemed a bit too soon, but no one asked me. 
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Galway moves the start date one day like that magically solves the problem? Wow
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Depends on your definition of problem.
If problem equals out of compliance with state and USEF guidelines? Yes.
If problem equals any EHV cases in the county (Riverside)? No.
And so on.
The choice was probably move back by a day or cancel as there are other events scheduled at the venue in subsequent weeks.
Will events scheduled for April run? My crystal ball is at the cleaners.
Once USEF/CDFA clears events to run, will everyone be comfortable showing? Definitely not.
Meanwhile, one local barn posted notices referencing WNV and flu with no mention of EHV.
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Hogwash. If I put my horse on a trailer and drive him to a trailhead to ride - Unless I KNOW there are creeks 24/7/365 on those trails, It is my responsibility to take water.
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Apparently the quarantine at Thermal is released. Los Angeles quarantine was released previously.
The big issue in SoCal now is Orange County.
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Does anyone know how things are going in MD? I checked the website and did note Laurel Park is affected.
Check the dates on the alerts on the website. The EHV outbreak at Laurel racetrack was last year (March 2021).
COTH just did an update on the cases at Meadowbrook. So far only the one horse that had to be euthanized, although they say 40 other horses have mild neurological symptoms due to EHV-1. No additional cases at other barns reported yet, but not much faith in the MD Department of Agriculture to report in a timely manner.
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