Calder lifts restrictions on one barn

MIAMI - Test results on the horse in Barn 78 at Calder that had exhibited symptoms of a possible neurological disorder earlier in the week came back negative for equine herpesvirus on Saturday, allowing track officials to lift restrictions imposed on the horses stabled in that barn.

Despite the negative test, the entire Calder barn area remains quarantined, with horses not allowed in or out, and three barns continue under restriction. The horses in those barns must train separately from the rest of the population and are not allowed to race.

The quarantine and restrictions were implemented last Monday after a horse belonging to leading trainer Bill White tested positive for the equine herpesvirus. White has horses stabled in each of the three restricted barns. The fourth barn had been placed under similar restrictions on Thursday while the sample on the unidentified horse was sent to the University of Kentucky College of Agriculture - Livestock Disease Diagnostic Center in Lexington for testing.

Horses in the three barns still under restriction continue to be monitored on a daily basis. Any horse in those barns who exhibits a temperature of over 102, nasal discharge, or a chronic cough will immediately be tested, track officials said. Only one horse from those barns has displayed any of those symptoms with tests on that animal coming back negative for the herpesvirus on Friday.

As long as no other horses test positive, Calder officials are targeting Dec. 13 for lifting shipping restrictions on the entire stable area and Dec. 20 for removing the restrictions on the three barns.

Saturday's scheduled 12-race program was reduced to 10 races after track management postponed the Grade 3 Tropical Turf and Grade 3 My Charmer handicaps. Most entered for the My Charmer and about one-third of the field for the Tropical Turf consisted of horses stabled outside the Calder barn area who would not have been allowed to ship in for the race. No makeup date has been determined for either stakes.

The quarantine, along with inclement weather that forced both scheduled turf races to be moved to a sloppy main track, also had a profound effect on the field sizes for the remaining 10 races on Saturday's card. A total of 30 horses, including eight of the 14 entered in the fourth race, were scratched off the program, leaving 70 left to run.