SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – Barn 85 at Saratoga has been placed under a 14-day precautionary quarantine by the New York Racing Association and the New York State Gaming Commission due to a reported case of strangles in that barn, according a press release sent out by the NYRA.
The quarantine is not expected to have a significant impact on the five-day Belmont Stakes Racing Festival scheduled to begin Wednesday. The Belmont Stakes is scheduled for June 7.
Strangles is a contagious bacterial infection that generally affects a horse’s respiratory system and causes symptoms similar to those of strep throat in humans, NYRA said. When properly diagnosed and treated, strangles is not considered a life-threatening infection and horses can recover fully.
The majority of horses in the quarantined barn are trained by Jeremiah Englehart. Trainer Jorge Abreu said he has 14 horses, all 2-year-olds, in that barn. During the initial quarantine period, those horses will be not be permitted to enter races or train among the general horse population. Afebrile/asymptomatic horses stabled in Barn 85 will have isolated training hours at the Oklahoma training track following the close of training for the general horse population at 10:30 a.m.
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The unraced 2-year-old Tranquil Sea, who is trained by Englehart, was referred to Rood & Riddle Equine Hospital on Wednesday after developing breathing issues. He was subsequently tested for a number of potential ailments, and a positive test for strangles was returned Friday morning, according to NYRA. The colt began treatment immediately at Rood & Riddle, and he was moved to a private farm for quarantine and treatment, according to NYRA.
Following official notification of the positive case by the NYS Department of Agriculture on Friday morning, NYRA and the NYSGC implemented standard infectious disease protocols, including restricting access to the horses in the quarantined barn, establishing a 24-hour security watch, mandating regular temperature checks for the horses in that barn, and enacting biosecurity measures for all individuals requiring access to Barn 85.
As of Friday morning, three additional febrile horses have been identified in Barn 85, NYRA reported. Those horses will be removed from the property to undergo further evaluation.
Horses entered for Wednesday’s card that are based in that barn are expected to be scratched but were not as of Friday morning. That includes Mo Plex, the Bay Shore Stakes winner who would be one of the top choices in Wednesday’s $200,000 Mike Lee Stakes at Saratoga, and a maiden Alpine Giant.
Abreu also has horses in Barn 86, including Kay Cup in Wednesday’s Bouwerie Stakes and that horse will be permitted to run. Abreu also has Scottish Lassie pointing to the Grade 1 Acorn on June 7, and she is expected to be entered.
The NYRA has not placed any restrictions on horses shipping in or out of Saratoga.
At least four racetracks – Finger Lakes in upstate New York, Monmouth Park in New Jersey, Laurel Park in Maryland, and Parx Racing outside of Philadelphia – have announced they will not be accepting shippers from Saratoga. Trainer Todd Pletcher said Friday he had to turn around a van that was sending Candytown to Monmouth for Saturday’s Jersey Derby, a race from which he will now be scratched.
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