A horse in Northumberland County has tested positive for a fast-spreading, sometimes fatal equine disease that has left at least two horses dead in Texas and sickened 29 others from multiple states, according to the Equine Disease Communications Center.

The outbreak of equine herpesvirus (EHV) — a highly contagious respiratory infection with strains that can cause more serious neurological disease — has Pennsylvania horse owners on edge and led some exhibitors to consider pulling out of the 2026 Farm Show, which opens in six weeks.

The majority of the neurological Equine Herpesvirus Myeloencephalopathy (EHM) cases are not fatal, the EDCC says, and most outbreaks between 60 to 70% of affected horses recover with treatment.

The most recent outbreak of the virus was found in horses from at

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