As of Nov. 4, the Colorado Department of Agriculture’s (CDA) state veterinarian’s office has 80 locations in 17 counties under quarantine after horses, mules, and cattle herds tested positive for vesicular stomatitis (VS).

“Now that most areas of the state have had a frost, the insect populations should be subsiding,” said state veterinarian Keith Roehr, DVM. “We hope this translates into rapidly decreasing case numbers as well. But, until we see those case numbers reduced, I encourage all livestock owners to be aware of their county status and take the proper precautions to prevent insect populations on their property.”

A 2014 outbreak of VS created 556 livestock investigations in Colorado resulting in 370 quarantines with the final quarantines released in January 2015.

A number of species are susceptible to VS, including horses, mules, cattle, bison, sheep, goats, pigs, and camelids. The clinical signs of the disease include vesicles, erosions, and sloughing of the skin on the muzzle, tongue, and teats and above the hooves of susceptible livestock. Vesicles are usually only seen early in the course of the