All four herpes-infected Parx horses have died

BENSALEM, Pa. – Monday was the fourth consecutive day that there hadn't been a confirmed case of the equine herpesvirus at Parx Racing. If no other horses test positive, the current quarantine will end May 5.

Since April 1, four horses have tested positive for the equine herpesvirus. They have all either died from the disease or been euthanized because of their degree of illness. Two of the horses were trained by Michael Aro and the other two by Ron Dandy, who are both stabled in Barn 30.

Dandy on Monday said the virus hit his horses hard.

"I lost a 3-year-old and a 9-year-old," he said. "One of my horses got sick, the next morning, we sent him to isolation, and the next morning, he was gone."

Dandy said his barn is being disinfected every day.

"The walls of the barn are wet from being disinfected," he said. "Everything has been disinfected – the stall webbings, the feed tubs, the water buckets. We have separate manure bins."

Barn 4 also is under quarantine because trainer Butch Reid, who is stabled there, claimed Sunshine Wild from Dandy on March 29, the day before the first horse to test positive for the equine herpesvirus became ill.

Sunshine Wild has not tested positive for the virus and is scheduled to be retested this week. If the test comes back negative, the quarantine on Barn 4 could be lifted.

During the quarantine, horses are not allowed to ship in or out of Parx.