BROOMFIELD, Colo. — Colorado State Veterinarian Dr. Maggie Baldwin issued the following statement on the Cañon City Wild Horse and Burro Facility disease outbreak.

“The Colorado State Veterinarian’s Office was notified on April 23 about the disease outbreak that has resulted in the death of 85 horses at the Cañon City Wild Horse and Burro Facility. The Bureau of Land Management and the US Department of Agriculture are actively investigating the incident and monitoring the wellbeing of animals at the facility. CDA is working with the two agencies to support their response to this incident.

On Tuesday, April 26, a field veterinarian with CDA conducted a site visit to the Cañon City facility and reviewed biosecurity measures being implemented at the facility. BLM has put a voluntary quarantine in place and has instituted rigorous measures to prevent further spread of the disease. Affected horses have been segregated and quarantined from the rest of the herd.

BLM is working with state and federal animal health officials to determine the exact cause of the outbreak. Samples from the facility have been submitted to two leading equine veterinary diagnostic laboratories in the country and the results will be used to guide the investigation into the underlying cause or causes of the outbreak and associated mortality.

CDA and the State Veterinarian’s office will continue to monitor the situation in Cañon City and support state and federal animal health officials in the investigation and response to this disease outbreak. The CDA and BLM will provide public updates as the situation evolves.”

–Colorado Department of Agriculture