From China View:
NEW DELHI may 9 (Xinhua) — Though India has remained free so far from influenza A/H1N1, another animal disease, Equine Influenza, or horse flu, has killed 43 horses in the west Indian states of Rajasthan and Gujarat, local Hindi daily Danik Bhaskar reported Saturday.
A laboratory based in Hissar of Haryana, in north India, has confirmed that the deaths were caused by the Equine Influenza commonly called “horse flu.”
The first death occurred in January in Gandhinagar in Gujarat, where 15 horses died of the disease last month, said the report.
To prevent the disease from spreading, the Gujarat government has instituted ban on buying and selling horses in the state.
In Rajasthan, 25 horses have died at a horse fair in the Jodhpur area, according to the report.
Equine Flu is caused by strains of Influenza A that are endemic in horses.
The virus can cross the species-barrier and affect humans as well.
Equine influenza is characterized by a very high rate of transmission among horses, and has a relatively short incubation time of one to five days.
Horses with horse flu can develop symptoms of fever, dry hacking cough and runny nose.
