Gulfstream Park officials have put in place a number of protocols designed to protect horses that are shipping in for the track’s marquee Pegasus World Cup card in the wake of a horse on the backstretch testing positive for equine herpesvirus, a highly contagious disease. The horse who tested positive resided in Barn 21, on the south side of the track’s backside. That barn, which currently holds approximately 155 horses, has been quarantined, and no horses in the barn will be allowed to congregate with any other horses at the track, according to Dr. Dionne Benson, the chief veterinary officer for 1/ST Racing, the parent company of Gulfstream. The horses shipping in for the $3 million Pegasus World Cup and its supporting stakes are being directed to Barn 4, Benson said, which is on the opposite side of the track and a “half-mile” from the quarantined barn. Those horses will be segregated from other horses on the backside when training, Benson said, out of an abundance of caution. “We won’t be mixing our house horses with any horses shipping in,” Benson said. Equine herpesvirus is a highly contagious disease, and it can sometimes prove fatal. Benson said that the quarantined barn is under “enhanced biosecurity protocols,” and the track is currently planning on a 21-day quarantine for all horses in the barn, as long as no horses in the barn display symptoms of the disease during that timeframe. Benson said that the horse that showed symptoms was shipped off the track to a local veterinary clinic on Saturday. The horse’s condition worsened and it was subsequently euthanized, Benson said. She declined to identify the horse. For the time being, Gulfstream will allow horses to ship in and out of the track, provided they have had no contact with any of the quarantined horses. In addition, Gulfstream has identified all horses that resided in the barn over the past two weeks but have shipped off to other locations, Benson said, and alerted their trainers to the positive test. The Pegasus World Cup is the richest race on a 13-race card that also includes seven other stakes races. Fourteen horses were entered in the World Cup. Super Corinto, who is housed in Barn 21, was scheduled to run in the World Cup but was withdrawn before the draw of the race. Benson said that she will be meeting with the Florida State Veterinarian on Monday afternoon to review the track’s current protocols, so the situation remains fluid. “For the time being, they seem to be happy with what we have done so far,” she said. :: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.