West Nile Virus

[Bugbear]

A friend of mine almost died from it a while back. I think horses can get and carry it, too.

[Tobus]

A friend of mine almost died from it a while back. I think horses can get and carry it, too.

Yes, it's a bigger deal in horses than it is in humans. We have to vaccinate our horses against it once a year. And I have seen horses die from it. But as I understand it, that's a different strain than the one humans can contract. So while WNV is active in my area (Texas), it's not much of a concern to humans.

That said, some people do get it and die each year. It's a very small number, but still. I think it is only really dangerous for the extremely old and extremely young.