The Colorado Department of Agriculture’s State Veterinarian’s Office has placed seven locations under quarantine after horses tested positive for vesicular stomatitis (VS). The quarantines are located in Weld and Boulder counties; results on additional tests in other counties are pending.

Colorado is the second state in the country to have confirmed cases of VS. Previous positive cases of vesicular stomatitis in 2014 have been diagnosed in the southern area of Texas near the Mexico border and more recently in Bastrop and Travis Counties just south of Austin.

“Vesicular stomatitis can be painful for animals and costly to their owners,” said state veterinarian Keith Roehr, DVM. “The virus typically causes oral blisters and sores that can be painful causing difficulty in eating and drinking.”

Equids, mules, cattle, bison, sheep, goats, pigs, and camelids are all susceptible to VS. The clinical signs of the disease include vesicles, erosions, and sloughing of the skin on the muzzle, tongue, teats, and above the hooves of affected livestock. Vesicles are usually only seen early in the course of the disease. The transmission of VS is not completely understood but components include insect vectors, mechanical transmission, and livestock movement