British Columbia has confirmed at least two cases of West Nile virus in horses -- a first for the province.
A provincial government news release says the virus has been confirmed in a horse in the Fraser Valley and one in the province's Interior, while tests on a third have yet to come back.
The province has had its first-ever human cases of the virus this summer, after it was confirmed in two people living in the same house in Kelowna.
In all cases -- both the humans and the horses -- the virus is believed to have been contracted inside British Columbia.
In 2006, a horse that had travelled to Colorado was infected with West Nile before returning to B.C.
Paul Kitching, chief veterinarian and branch director at the Animal Health Centre, says the confirmed horse cases is not a surprise as the virus moves into the province.
