Jun 3, 2025; Saratoga, NY, USA; A general view of the morning sunrise over the Oklahoma Training track at Saratoga Race Course. Gregory Fisher-Imagn Images

Positive Case of Strangles Identified in Saratoga’s Barn 66

Originally posted on Horse Racing on SI | By Mary Rufo | Last updated Jun 26, 2025 10:36 PM ET

Another Saratoga barn has been placed under quarantine due to a strangles outbreak. A group of horses in Barn 66 at Saratoga Race Course will undergo a 14-day quarantine, per the New York Racing Association, Inc. (NYRA) press release from June 26.

Tenacious Child, an unraced two-year-old filly under the care of George Weaver tested positive for strangles on Wednesday evening. Strangles is a bacterial infection that is comparable to strep throat in humans. While highly contagious, strangles is typically not life-threatening.

Barns 60 and 63 will also be monitored under precautionary quarantine protocol, though no additional positives have been reported at this time. Horses in barns 60, 63, and 66 will not be able to participate in training or racing around horses. There will be a precautionary isolated training session each morning exclusively for horses in those barns.

NYRA states no additional shipping restrictions have been enacted.

This marks the third case of strangles within NYRA and the second case of strangles in Saratoga in the past month. The first case came to Saratoga’s Barn 85 on May 30. Trainers Jorge Abreu and Jeremiah Englehart stable horses in Barn 85 located in the Annex of the Oklahoma Training Track.

While never testing positive for strangles, Mo Plex was one of the horses affected by this quarantine. Mo Plex, a stakes-winning New York bred, was entered in the Mike Lee Stakes on June 4 but was forced to scratch due to the circumstances. Mo Plex returned to the races on June 21 to win the Grade 3 Ohio Derby at Thistledown.

On June 14, NYRA announced Barn 28 at Belmont Park was under quarantine due to a positive case of strangles. The barn stables horses that belong to Weaver, Todd Pletcher, and Rudy Rodriguez. However, the two-year-old gelding that tested positive was trained by Weaver.

The four-day Fourth of July Racing Festival will begin on July 3 and serve as the prelude to the regular Saratoga Racing Meet that kicks off July 10.