Foot and mouth forces Irish cancellation Irish Horseracing suffered it`s first cancellation due to foot and mouth disease since 1968 when a point-to-point meeting in the North was called off today.The Department of Agriculture in Northern Ireland today announced a five mile exclusion zone in mid-Ulster and advised North Down Hunt to cancel the racing scheduled for tomorrow at Comber, Co. Down.A spokesperson for the hunt said: 'It wasn`t a question of a ban but the Department of Agriculture said that they felt under the circumstances it would be advisable not to bring people from the farming community together.'Horses cannot contract foot and mouth but can carry the disease. Racing was halted for three months in the 1967-68 season after an outbreak.Point-to-point racing is held by the local hunts in Ireland and has been a schooling ground for many National Hunt stars.
