Shetland pony's death 'not linked to EI'

The company behind the transportation of an Australian shetland pony says it is drawing too long a bow to suggest its death had any connection to the equine influenza (EI) outbreak.

The pony died of an unidentified respiratory disease in August after it was transported to the US by a company which was also transporting horses to Sydney's Eastern Creek Quarantine station at the time of the outbreak.
Adelaide Plains Equine Clinic spokesman Dr Elizabeth Woolsey Herbert says the pony could have been infected by equipment or staff involved in both deliveries.

She wants the Callinan Inquiry to look into the exact cause of the pony's death.

International Racing Transport group spokesman Quentin Wallace says there is nothing to suggest the death was linked to equine influenza.