LOCAL : 2 More County Horses Succumb to Poisoning From Tainted Hay
Two horses apparently stricken with a rare type of food poisoning from tainted hay were destroyed in Orange County today as reports of sick horses continued to stream in, authorities said.
One of the horses died early this morning at the Orange County Fairgrounds Equestrian Center, bringing the total to nine that have succumbed to the deadly toxin at the Costa Mesa facility.
The other horse died at the Serrano Creek Ranch Equestrian Center in San Juan Capistrano, the first Orange County death outside of the fairgrounds.
Three more horses at the fairgrounds were taken ill Thursday and are being treated with an experimental antiserum obtained from the Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta.
State health officials this week blamed botulism for the deaths and ordered a recall of nearly 1,000 tons of hay cubes believed to be the source of the toxin. At least 18 horses in four Southern California counties have died as a result of the illness, and many more are sick.
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