Sept 10 (Reuters) – The first horse in the United States to be infected with New World screwworm has been detected in southern Texas near the Mexican border, data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture showed.
The case of the flesh-eating parasite was confirmed on Wednesday in Presidio County, showed the USDA website, after months of infestation of U.S. cattle that has raised alarms about how to control the spread of the pest.
The Texas Animal Health Commission, which had detected the case, on Wednesday issued an order banning the movement of warm-blooded animals outside a designated “infested” zone within Presidio and Jeff Davis counties.
A previous screwworm outbreak killed thousands of animals in the U.S. before the pest was declared eradicated in the 1960s.
In Texas, where authorities confirmed the first new U.S. animal cases this year, experts estimate a widespread outbreak could cost the economy up to $1.8 billion.
Reuters reported last week on growing concerns that smuggled animals, including horses, could be possible hosts for New World screwworm. The USDA and Texas authorities did not address the origin of the affected horse.
The U.S. Equestrian Federation, which organizes the U.S. Equestrian Open, said the newly detected infestation occurred in the hind limb of a working ranch horse, without providing further details.
It urged horse owners to regularly inspect their horses.
“We encourage every horse owner to help protect their horses and the broader equine community by practicing good wound care, fly control, and biosecurity,” the organization said in a statement.
(Reporting by Cassandra Garrison and Daina Beth Solomon; editing by Lincoln Feast.)
