LYCOS RETRIEVER 
Horses: Years
built 266 days ago
Although birds are the primary hosts of West Nile Virus, the virus can ... be transmitted to humans and other animals (such as horses, cats, and squirrels) through mosquito bites. Most humans infected with WNV exhibit mild flu-like symptoms or no symptoms at all. However, in some cases, infection can cause life-threatening encephalitis or meningitis. Outbreaks of WNV in humans have been observed in Europe, Russia and the Middle East for years, with the first U.S. outbreak occurring in 1999. The disease has spread rapidly in the U.S. since then, and thus far in 2002 more than 3,700 cases of West Nile Virus infection have been reported by state health departments, resulting in over 200 deaths.
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This is only for professional horses and riders. It is performed for the enjoyment of spectators by highly skilled and trained horses and riders. The horses used, originally from Spain, are the Andalusian and the Lipizzaner which are especially bred for this exhausting work. Mostly stallions are used because of their muscle build, strength and stamina. It is similar to dressage as dressage incorporates some smaller movements, but it is much more challenging. The horses are generally much older when they start performing because it takes years and years to train them... why training starts at around three years.
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The process begins when owners across the country take their horses to a legitimate sale, never suspecting that within days their horse could end up on a plate in a high-end restaurant overseas. Three years ago, 1986 Kentucky Derby winner Ferdinand ended up in a slaughterhouse in Japan. And because of the quick kill and export, these slaughter plants have become a convenient dumping ground for stolen horses. In fact, horse theft in California dropped 34 percent after that state instituted a ban on horse slaughter in 1998.
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Buck Brannaman discovered his calling for working with horses when he was a young boy. His method of training focuses on communicating with horses, reading their body language, and making them feel safe so that horse and rider can truly understand each other. He considers himself a horse gentler, not a horse breaker. Brannaman conducts horsemanship clinics year-round all over the country, teaching horse owners how to better understand their horses. Brannaman has authored three books, one being autobiographical. For more information about Brannaman's horsemanship clinics and books, visit http://www.brannaman.com.
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Four months ago, the wild horses of the American West were doomed to a deadly fate from which it is unlikely that they will be rescued. In December 2004, Senator Conrad Burns (R-Montana) sneakily attached a rider to the 4,000-page Federal Consolidated Appropriations Bill, eviscerating years of federal protection for America's wild horses. Burns opened the backdoor for thousands of these horses to be sold for slaughter with the goal of freeing Western lands for uninhibited cattle grazing. An even greater cause for concern is that an appropriation bill could change, without debate and full public disclosure, the 33-year-old Wild Free-Roaming Horse & Burro Act of 1971 that had protected against such killings.
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The first cases of equine West Nile virus were detected in 1999, with 25 horses being afflicted with the disease that year. Since then, the USDA has received reports of West Nile virus in all 48 states in the continental United States, with more than 22,600 horses having contracted the disease. Approximately one-third of horses clinically affected with West Nile virus die or are euthanized.
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