Racing in limbo despite no new cases of equine flu reported from tests on hundreds of horses

Encouraging news for the BHA that had no new positive tests for equine influenza emerged on Saturday was balanced by the fact that the sport remained in limbo with the vast majority of tests still yet to be evaluated.

Racing’s ruling body reported that they had the results of 720 tests. But over 2,100 tests had been conducted by Saturday afternoon with a further 5,000 swabs distributed among the 174 stables around the country that remained in lockdown.

Laboratories, which have identified the strain of the EI virus the sport is dealing with, will work throughout the weekend in the hope that the BHA can make a decision on Monday about when they can re-start a sport which has been closed down since Thursday.

Racing’s ruling body have had the results from 720 of the 2,100 tests carried out so far

The sport and betting industry have already lost an estimated £25m with yesterday’s prestigious Newbury fixture one of the casualties. The big fear is an extended shutdown that would endanger next month’s Cheltenham Festival.

No new positive tests have surfaced at the Cheshire stable of Grand National-winning trainer Donald McCain, which has had six horses test positive and is the centre of the outbreak of the highly contagious virus.

All stables which had runners at meeting where a McCain horse also competed have been placed in quarantine.

Cautiously welcoming the news of no new positives, David Sykes, the BHA’s Director of Equine Health and Welfare, said: ‘There are many more tests to analyse and the nature of the incubation period means that a negative test now does not mean that horse has never had this flu virus. So these yards continue to remain locked down and their horses kept under observation.

The sport remains in limbo with the vast majority of tests still yet to be evaluated

‘Though hundreds of tests have been completed already, there are many hundreds more to be analysed over the weekend before we will have a fuller picture.

‘I would advise against anyone drawing any conclusions or making any predictions based on this set of results.’

The best news for the BHA was that a case in the Cleveland stable of trainer Rebecca Menzies that had been reported as ‘suspicious’ with one of three horses under scrutiny showing symptoms of EI had now proved to be negative.

Evidence that EI had spread from McCain’s stable would have been damaging to the BHA’s hope of a rapid resumption of the sport. 

THE BHA has also hit back at trainers, including Nigel Twiston-Davies and Colin Tizzard, who have said their shutdown has been an overreaction by pointing out the decision was taken after advice from the Veterinary Committee which is comprised of representatives from the Association of Racecourse Veterinary Surgeons, British Equine Veterinary Association and Animal Health Trust.

The BHA said: ‘The results we have seen so far suggest that the actions taken by the BHA have helped prevent the possible further spread of this highly infectious virus.’