THERMAL, CA (January 27, 2012) – In the wake of recent confirmed cases of EHV-1 in Southern California, including a nearby case at the Empire Polo Club in Indio earlier this week, the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) and other experts have classified the HITS Desert Horse Park as extremely low risk. For the second day in a row, the CDFA has reported no new cases in the state of California, indicating that the situation appears to be well contained and under control.
HITS President and CEO Tom Struzzieri and the HITS Show Management team have been engaged in daily communication with the CDFA as well as Mike Manno – Official Veterinarian for the Empire Polo Club. Earlier today, Manno provided an update on the situation at the Polo Club, which is located approximately seven miles away from the Thermal property:
“The affected horse was first seen last Saturday and euthanized on Monday evening after testing positive. It's been nearly a week without incident,” said Manno. “Since then, the Polo Club has been under 21-day quarantine. We have had no horses in or out and that area of stabling where the original horse was diagnosed is under a much stricter quarantine. Out of the thousand or so horses here we've had no other concerns other than one horse that had a mild fever yesterday, but no signs of illness. Today, that horse no longer exhibits a temperature, but we've isolated him until the test results come back as an extra precaution.”
As for Thermal, Manno went on to state that nothing at the facility has prompted any need for concern.
“We went over earlier in the week with the state officials to assess any potential risk and unanimously concluded that Thermal's exposure was minimal and didn't provide any reason to consider closing the show and that's what we still believe,” he said “There are no restrictions for Thermal, except what HITS has decided to implement on their own out of extra precaution for some local barns. At this time, we fully believe that it's safe for horses to come into the show in Thermal and we will continue to feel that way until there's a solid reason not to.”
Duncan F. Peters, DVM, MS of the Hagyard Equine Medical Institute in Kentucky is the Official Veterinarian of the HITS Desert Circuit and has declared business as usual for the circuit.
“It's really operations as normal here. The State Vets did an excellent job of assessing any potential risk and they have told us that Thermal is considered very low risk,” said Peters. “Everyone here is 100% confident with everything proceeding as normal. We have precautions in place and the communication from the State to show management and the Vets onsite to the customers is open, accurate and frequent.”
HITS Management continues to be vigilant in order to ensure that the show grounds and the equestrians are well-protected.
“I'm pleased with the proactive, coordinated efforts by the State, the Polo Club and our team here,” said Struzzieri. “We head into our opening weekend with great confidence and continued optimism for the success of this year's circuit.”
For more information, please visit cdfa.ca.gov or call the HITS Thermal Show Office at 760.399.9200. About HITS, Inc.
HITS, Inc. produces high-quality, international-level hunter/jumper horse shows. Based in upstate New York in the village of Saugerties, HITS has been producing shows since 1982 and is now a nationwide company with world-class circuits in California, Florida, Arizona, New York and Virginia. In 2010, HITS took the industry to new heights when it hosted the first-ever Pfizer $1 Million Grand Prix. In 2011, HITS hosted the richest weekend in show jumping with the return of the Pfizer Million and the introduction of the Diamond Mills $500,000 Hunter Prix Final. In 2012, the historic weekend will get even sweeter with the addition of the $250,000 HITS 3' Hunter Prix Final September 8-9.
For more information and a complete schedule of classes and events, visit www.HitsShows.com . Stay connected with HITS, join us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter !
Media should contact the HITS Media Team at 845.246.8833 or e-mail Media_Info@HitsShows.com . |
