A major qualifying event for the San Antonio Stock Show & Rodeo was canceled this week due to a growing outbreak of Equine Herpesvirus-1, an illness that veterinarians say has already claimed the lives of several horses.

The Uvalde Rodeo Qualifier was scheduled to start this week and run through Saturday. But organizers — including the San Antonio Stock Show & Rodeo, the Women’s Professional Rodeo Association (WPRA) and the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) — announced on Facebook that they jointly agreed to cancel the event in order to prioritize animal safety.

“None of the horses that have been infected with the disease ever made it to Uvalde,” said Chris Derby, chief marketing officer for the San Antonio Stock Show & Rodeo. “We did this as a precaution; we didn’t have any

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