Check out the group 'Quality Horse Breeders' where we have posted the news release from Equine Canada regarding the CEM (Contagious Equine Metritis) outbreak in Kentucky that has now been found in Idaho stallions that stood at the Kentucky facility, and possibly in mares in Alberta and Ontario where semen was shipped this past breeding season.

While this outbreak involves Quarter Horses and Paints, it could just as easily have been warmbloods. Reading the related articles on The Horse magazine online, really highlights how insidious this disease is and how easily it is spread. It is a real wake up call to all breeders, regardless of breed.

Because this happened at a large collection facility with 13 stallions in residence involving shipping fresh and frozen semen, the effects are obviously incredibly far reaching. The related articles highlight the need for careful washing and good basic hygiene practices that all of us should be following ... whether it be CEM or some other infective agent.

The problem in the USA is that these were not imported stallions and resided in a country that had not reported a CEM outbreak since 1998, although there was a report of 2 Lipizzaner stallions in Wisconsin in a closed herd in 2006. Taylorella equigenitalis is a Gram-negative bacterium that's responsible for CEM, which causes infertility and abortions in mares and infertility in stallions. Contagious equine metritis is considered a foreign animal disease in the United States, but it has afflicted horses there via imported stallions and semen.

Fortunately, Canada has very rigorous testing procedures in place for imported stallions and mares where they must be tested in their country of origin, be deemed clear for a specified period of time while in quarantine and then retested in Canada and again quarantined during that period. CEM is a reportable disease in Canada. This means that all suspected cases must be reported to the CFIA for immediate investigation by inspectors. There are international trade implications if a country loses its CEM-free status.

The last known CEM positive horse in Canada never got out of Quarantine and was presumably returned to Europe. In 2001, a 7-year-old warmblood stallion from Germany was at the center of a storm of controversy after testing positive for contagious equine metritis (CEM) upon importation to Canada. The horse had tested negative for CEM before leaving Germany. Test results conflicted because Germany used a seven-day incubation period for cultured samples taken from breeding stock. Canada, by contrast, requires a 14-day incubation period, based on CFIA data indicating that some samples only test positive after 10-13 days of incubation. Canadian regulations also stipulate that imported stallions, aged two and older, must be test-bred to two mares, which subsequently must test negative for CEM.

There are similar regulations / restrictions for testing in place for imported frozen semen.

Lots of food for thought folks!