On Dec. 1, we received additional information from the Hunter Valley Equine Research Centre (HVERC), a research facility adjacent to Scone racetrack in the heart of the Australian breeding area, on a problem that is causing sporadic abortions throughout the area in mid- to late-term pregnancies. This disease has been termed equine amnionitis and fetal loss (EAFL). Some researchers and veterinarians have noted similarities to this problem and mare reproductive loss (MRLS) that hit the United States in 2001-2002.

The HVERC correspondence stated that between March and November 2004, an unspecified number of mares in New South Wales and Queensland suffered abortions due to a similar disease process. A small number of farms suffered devastating losses (15 of 25 mares on one farm), while most affected farms had one or two cases. Preliminary data indicate that 15-20 separate farms might have been affected