The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and the Axtell Contract Off-Range Corrals have issued a voluntary quarantine of wild horses at the facility due to an outbreak of upper respiratory tract infection.

Individual infected animals are being tested for the exact cause, but the BLM said early results suggest the infection appears to be strangles, a highly contagious disease caused by Streptococcus equi.

BLM officials have notified the Utah State Veterinarian of the outbreak, who visited the facility. Coordination is also occurring with Utah Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory for testing of the infected horses.

Facility staff began seeing signs of strangles on March 27, mostly in younger animals that had weakened or immature immune systems. No horses have died as a result of the localized outbreak