Australia’s major studs have been rocked by confirmation that more than 30 of the world’s leading shuttle stallions will be detained in quarantine for up to a month after the detection of a virus in one horse recently imported from Japan, according to the Racing & Sports Web site.

The Federal Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry Peter McGauran has announced that one horse currently being held in quarantine at Eastern Creek near Sydney is showing clinical signs consistent with the contagious equine influenza (EI) virus. It would be the first time the EI virus has been detected in Australia with blood tests of the horse indicating a recently acquired infection.

“While it’s too early to be certain, we suspect this to be one of the horses from Japan, given there has been an outbreak of EI in that country,” McGauran said in the Racing & Sports report.”EI is an extremely serious matter and I will not take any risks with this disease getting into Australia.”

The EI outbreak in Japan has brought racing in that country to a standstill over the last week