Thursday, August 14, 2008

Hendra virus surviving horse to be euthanised

A Queensland horse breeder has threatened legal action after the government ordered a horse be euthanised despite it having recovered from the potentially fatal Hendra virus. (more DPI info here)

Co-owner and breeder of the horse, Warren Small, on Wednesday said he was sick and tired of dealing with government departments who "are never accountable for their actions" and cared little about the impact of their actions on individuals.

His horse, Tamworth, recovered after contracting the Hendra virus at a bayside Brisbane veterinary clinic and was now the only animal in Australia which has beaten the virus, Mr Small said.

More here.

The Queensland Department of Primary Industry has ordered the horse be destroyed after it recovered from the Hendra virus because they are unsure whether the virus will still be carried by the horse and continue to be a threat to humans.

7 comments:

bikeonaboy said...

I have seen the aftermath of a badly buried horse. The trick is to dig a really, really deep hole.

Friends of mine had to bury one in their back paddock, and the ditch digger didn't go deep enough. They were left with four hooves sticking out of the ground, even after making a mound about a foot high over the grave.

kae said...

Icky.

And no good as a bicycle rack, either.

bikeonaboy said...

You missed my very witty reparte at Tim Blair regarding this post:

http://annoyancesandirritations.blogspot.com/2008/08/whats-canoer.html

kae said...

Which thread?

kc said...

I don't know much about horses, please forgive my ignorance here. Would it be feasible to quarantine the horse, say with an old horse, to see if the 2nd horse contracts said virus? Would that answer the question about contagion enough with which to make the final decision?

kae said...

It has been suggested that Tamworth, the horse, could have developed antibodies to the virus and he may hold the key to a vaccination or a cure. It has also been suggested that Tamworth be put with another horse to see if the other horse contracts Hendra, however, a vet from the DPI said today that this may not work as it is possible that the Hendra virus might lay dormant (I think he used an example of a human who contracted Hendra many months after exposure). The vet also pointed out that it may be dangerous to the human population for the horse to be kept.

A vexing problem.

bikeonaboy said...

Thread = "No evidence".

You missed the bit about a "Svarnlkrgrisvilrrvnger" vs a "Svarnlkrgrisvilrrvngist" (one who paddles a canoe).