Equine f lu threat to Cheltenham Festival

AN OUTBREAK of equine flu has shut down a string of horse race meetings – and could wreck next month’s Cheltenham Festival.

The British Horseracing Authority called off yesterday’s meetings at Huntingdon, Doncaster and Chelmsford and Ffos Las in Wales after three horses tested positive.

While highly contagious among horses, the respiratory disease cannot spread to humans – but it can affect donkeys and mules. Animals with equine flu can develop a high fever, coughing, nasal discharge and swelling of the lymph nodes. It can take months for a horse to fully recover.

This year has already seen equine flu found in Essex, Cheshire, Derbyshire, Lincolnshire, Yorkshire and Suffolk.

The outbreak is the biggest headache for the racing industry since the foot-and-mouth crisis in 2001, which duly saw Cheltenham cancelled. The BHA has now contacted more than 0 trainers and vets to assess the risk of the flu spreading, with British-trained runners barred from Ireland.

The three newest cases were found in horses which had already been vaccinated against the disease, belonging to trainer Donald McCain’s Bankhouse stables in Cheshire. Mr McCain – the son of Ginger McCain, who trained Red Rum, said: ‘The BHA were contacted immediately and we are liaising closely with them. We are scrupulous about observing the health status of horses in our care and taking the necessary steps to treat any condition that may affect them.’ He said he did not know if the infection had come from recent arrivals at the yard or horses returning from racing.

David Sykes, director of equine health at the BHA, said: ‘[Mr McCain] has acted professionally with... the health of his horses as his priority.’

The three infected horses raced at Ayr in Scotland and Ludlow in Shropshire on Wednesday. Trainers at the courses will not be able to race until their horses have been tested and cleared, said the BHA. It will decide on Monday if racing can resume.

Having missed out on a string of races, bookmaker Paddy Power offered odds on when the outbreak would be over.