WEYAUWEGA – The Waupaca County Fair kicked off this week without one of its longtime attractions: horse exhibits and shows were canceled to protect horses from equine strangles.
The annual fair which runs through Aug. 30 will feature empty horse barns this year after Waupaca County 4-H Horse & Pony Project superintendents announced on Aug. 21 that no horses would be allowed on the fairgrounds for the duration of the event.
The precautionary measure was decided in consultation with Wisconsin State Veterinarian Dr. Ellen Hooker, after organizers said they learned that one or more project horses had been exposed to a confirmed case of strangles in a neighboring county.
There are currently no confirmed cases of strangles among the project’s member horses, according to Emily Huettl and Marcy Farkas, superintendents of the Waupaca County 4-H Horse & Pony Project.
“We would rather give up one fair than risk spreading strangles to another horse, another family, or another barn,” Huettl and Farkas wrote in a letter to project members.
Strangles is a highly contagious bacterial disease of horses that causes fever, nasal discharge, coughing, difficulty swallowing, and painful, swollen lymph nodes or abscesses under the jaw or throat. The disease is spread through direct horse-to-horse contact or contaminated equipment, grooming supplies, buckets and clothing.
While the 4-H horses show no signs of infection, the potential exposure prompted organizers to cancel the equine exhibit and postpone the horse show, which had been scheduled for Aug. 28. The show has been rescheduled to Oct. 10.
The decision comes amid broader concerns about strangles in the region. On Aug. 13, the Equine Disease Communication Center published an alert from the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (DATCP) confirming a case of strangles within Waupaca County. That case was confirmed on Aug. 11 and involved an unvaccinated 23-year-old horse acquired from an auction.
The affected horse, which survived, exhibited nasal discharge and a cough. One suspected case and four exposures were also linked to that incident, according to state officials.
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