Report: Mahoning Valley barn is quarantined after strangles case

A barn at Mahoning Valley in Ohio was placed under quarantine after a horse was found to have strangles.

Daily Racing Form reported that a notice from the Kentucky state veterinarian's office said the horse had been isolated off site. Other horses in the barn where the horse was stabled also were found to have elevated temperatures and were being tested, according to the report. The entire barn, which has about 75 stalls, was quarantined.

The New York Racing Association responded Wednesday afternoon with a text notice to horsemen that said, "NYRA is not accepting horses or race and returns from Mahoning Valley Race Course until further notice."

Churchill Downs is taking a wait-and-see approach before deciding whether to accept any shippers from the Ohio track either in Louisville or Turfway Park in Florence, Ky.

"The Kentucky ag department is monitoring the situation and waiting for test results from horses in the barn up there," said Ben Huffman, vice president of racing for Churchill. "Results later today."

The notice said Mahoning Valley was allowing horses to ship in and out of the Youngstown, Ohio, track, according to the report, and horses that shipped in were being stabled in the receiving barn.

The notice reported by DRF encouraged horsemen who ship to Mahoning Valley to "understand the status of race-return could change without notice and the quarantine area could be expanded," according to the report.

Strangles is an infection of the upper respiratory tract. It is highly contagious but generally does not lead to serious problems.