The following statement was posted on the “Whisper Syndrome” message board yesterday (https://sports.groups.yahoo.com/group/whisper_syndrome/). It was made by Thach Winslow, DVM, the veterinarian who treated horses on a farm in Shawsville, Va., one of which died of a yet to be determined illness. The horse’s owner, John Holland, posted information about his horse’s clinical signs on an Internet message board and dubbed the horse’s unidentified disease “Whisper Syndrome” after his deceased horse, Whisper. Many horse owners responded in a whirlwind of concern, suggesting their horses might have had the same problem.

Holland reported on the message board that Whisper died after a rapid onset of clinical signs that included inappetence, neurologic signs, and colitis. Last week, veterinarians cautioned horse owners not to jump to conclusions in diagnosing their own animals or linking past cases with the alleged disease, because the cause of the disease has not been confirmed and claims of an outbreak have not been substantiated