College of Agriculture
Veterinary Science	Mare Reproductive Loss Syndrome Index Page
Briefings

Mare Reproductive Loss Syndrome

Briefing, June 1

Briefing, June 1, 2001
Friday, 5:00 pm

Mare Reproductive Loss Syndrome
UK College of Agriculture

MRLS Survey Team Update

Wednesday, May 30, over 20 veterinarians, state and federal animal health employees, and qualified volunteers began surveying equine farms in multiple areas of the state.  The response from the farm managers has been overwhelmingly positive.  Over 322 pieces of information are collected on the questionnaire, which will be analyzed for risk factors on farms with mares affected by early fetal loss and/or late term abortion.  This information will be correlated with facts provided by farms which have had few or no losses.

When will we have answers?  Over 150 farms are being surveyed, which means that more than 48,300 pieces of data need to be analyzed.  This type of detailed information takes time to analyze, and results will be released to the industry as soon as a thorough evaluation of the data is completed.  Surveys from the majority of farms will be completed by Wednesday June 6.

We again would like to thank the cooperative spirit of the entire Kentucky equine industry in this major effort to determine the risk factors of Mare Reproductive Loss Syndrome.  By understanding the animal, pasture and environmental factors on farms, it is the intention that realistic and scientifically based recommendations can be made for all horse farms to prevent this syndrome from reoccurring in the future.

A recent report has suggested hemlock as possibly involved in MRLS. The scientific investigating team wishes to again reemphasize that it is not excluding any possibility. Field observations and clinical data still suggest the involvement of cyanide. If hemlock is involved in this syndrome, the examination of equine tissues from late term fetuses or blood serum from MRLS mares should demonstrate the presence of toxins associated with hemlock poisoning.