DELAWARE - Delaware's Office of the State Veterinarian within the state's Department of Agriculture has confirmed two cases of West Nile Virus in horses this year.
The state says the onset of the symptoms for the horses occurred between Aug. 31 and Sept. 1. They include a 4-year-old Standardbred gelding and a 7-year-old Standardbred mare. Both were from Kent County and have been euthanized, according to the Office of the State Veterinarian.
The state departments are warning residents and horse owners of the symptoms. The West Nile Virus is transmitted via mosquito bites, generally in summer and fall, with a peak period for disease transmissions from mid-August to mid-October. The departments say symptoms include, "fever (although not always present with WNV), anorexia, head pressing, depression or behavior changes, wobbling or staggering, weakness, blindness, convulsions, muscle spasms in the head and neck, or hind-limb weakness."
Although humans can also be infected by WNV, Delaware's Department of Agriculture says transmission requires a mosquito bite. They add that the virus cannot be directly transmitted between horses or between horses and people.
There are several ways the public can take precautions to avoid mosquito bites. The following tips are provided by the Office of the State Veterinarian within the Delaware Department of Agriculture:
• Wearing light-colored clothing such as long-sleeved shirts and long pants when outdoors in mosquito-prone areas
• Applying insect repellent containing 10- to 30-percent diethyltoluamide (DEET) in accordance with label instructions
• Avoiding mosquito-infested areas and times of peak mosquito activity around dusk, dawn, and night.