Animal advocates want wild, domestic horses kept apart

RENO -- Concerned about the threat of an outbreak of a herpes virus among wild horse herds, animal advocates on Thursday asked the federal government to keep potentially infected domestic horses away from horses and burros on public lands.

Equine Herpes Virus-1 poses no risk to humans, but can be fatal to horses. It can be airborne and transmitted by touch or by sharing feed, brushes, bits and other equipment.

Traced back to a cutting horse competition earlier this month in Ogden, Utah, more than 1,000 animals have been exposed to the virus through direct or indirect contact with infected horses.