An infectious illness called equine infectious anemia or EIA has just been confirmed in a horse that was transported from Washington to its home here in Canyon County, Idaho.

EIA symptoms include low-grade fever, lethargy, weight loss, yellowing of body tissues, anemia, swelling in limbs, and weakness.  One of the big problems with EIA is that symptoms often times are very subtle so they usually go unnoticed for long periods of time.

Oh, and get this.  EIA can be fatal and there's no cure.  Yeah.  You get this, you're in BIG TROUBLE.  Because there is no vaccine for EIA, the state of Idaho mandates any horse that comes down with this virus be isolated for the rest of their life.  Whoah!

The Idaho State Department of Agriculture (ISDA) State Veterinarian Dr. Bill Barton stated...

Horse owners are strongly encouraged to incorporate an annual Coggins test into their animal health regimen regardless of whether they travel interstate.  Horses that acquire EIA are infected throughout their lives and will remain a source of infection to other horses in close proximity, so Coggins tests are incredibly important to managing the spread of EIA.

According to KTVB, EIA is usually spread by biting insects, but used needles or other equipment contaminated with the blood of an infected horse can also pass the infection.  The following video will educate you a bit more about what this nasty virus is.

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