In an effort to show that Contagious Equine Metritis (CEM) does not exist or is at very low levels in the US equine horse population, the USDA is offering lower-cost testing to owners of active breeding stallions through August. It is part of a nationwide survey, with the goal of sampling 3,000 stallions.

Conducted under the auspices of the USDA Animal and Plant and Health Inspection Service (APHIS), the voluntary testing will involve all breeds and most of the 50 states. The numbers are based on the National Animal Health Monitoring System estimates of breeding stallion populations in each state. For example, APHIS officials hope to test more than 300 stallions in both Texas and Kentucky, nearly 200 in California, and more than 100 in Florida.

The USDA will pay shipping and lab diagnostic costs for one set of samples. Stallion owners must pay the costs of collecting the samples, to be done by a USDA-accredited equine veterinarian.

"We hope to get a representative sample of a state's overall active stallion breeding population," said Jim Barrett, public affairs specialist and emergency coordinator with APHIS. “The goal is to sample 3,000 of the most active breeding stallions from around the United States