The relationship between horse owners and horses encompasses various aspects of equine management, care, and interaction. This topic explores the dynamics between humans and horses, focusing on areas such as husbandry practices, welfare considerations, and the psychological and physical effects of human interaction on horses. It includes studies on training methods, behavioral assessments, and the impact of owner expertise on horse health and performance. Additionally, the topic examines the influence of human-animal bonds on horse behavior and well-being. This page compiles peer-reviewed research studies and scholarly articles that investigate these interactions and their implications for equine management and welfare.
Legg K, Gee E, Bolwell C, Bridges J, Rogers CW.There are limited data on the training and management practices of Standardbred trainers in New Zealand. The aims of this study were to describe the 2-year-old training practices of Standardbred trainers and to examine if there were differences in the production process between public (commercial) and amateur (licensed-to-train) trainers. An online Qualtrics survey was conducted after the 2016/7 racing season and completed by 154 Standardbred trainers, 88 (57%) of which had 2-year-olds in training. Descriptive statistics were used to describe the data stratified by public and licensed-to-train...
Simões J, Sales Luís JP, Tilley P.Severe equine asthma (SEA) syndrome is a chronic recurrent respiratory disease, common among adult horses. The disease occurs in genetically susceptible individuals after their exposure to organic dust. Thus, environmental management has proved essential in controlling airway challenge and disease exacerbation. This is a demanding process that can only be achieved through the horse owners' cooperation. One year after initial diagnosis of SEA in a group of 39 horses, owner compliance to an environmental management protocol was evaluated. The overall compliance to the protocol was poor and the h...
Lynden J, Hollands T, Ogden J.There is an evidence base in human and small animal veterinary health care contexts which understands how practitioners engage in partnership working with patients and owners to support adherence to treatment/care plans. However, as yet, it is believed there is no similar evidence base for how practitioners in equine health care contexts work with equine owners. It is argued that this is essential for understanding complex equine practitioner-owner interaction involving the prevention and management of laminitis. The aim of this study was to explore farrier-client interaction where risk manage...
Lindroth KM, Johansen A, Båverud V, Dicksved J, Lindberg JE, Müller CE.Free faecal liquid (FFL) is a condition in horses where faeces are voided in one solid and one liquid phase. The liquid phase contaminates the tail, hindlegs and area around the anus of the horse, resulting in management problems and potentially contributing to impaired equine welfare. The underlying causes are not known, but anecdotal suggestions include feeding wrapped forages or other feed- or management-related factors. Individual horse factors may also be associated with the presence of FFL. This study, therefore, aimed to characterize horses showing FFL particularly when fed wrapped fora...
Pickering P, Hockenhull J.Information on the management of animals within domestic environments is freely available to animal owners and caregivers either online, or in paper form by request. However, awareness is growing within the animal welfare sector that simply providing written guidelines or educational material is not enough to affect a positive change in owners in relation to animal welfare. In the quest to improve equine welfare, understanding the way that owners and other stakeholders seek information and their communication preferences is key to effective dissemination of up to date equine welfare informatio...
Machová K, Daďová K, Chaloupková H, Svobodová I.Many studies have shown that having a dog has an impact on the increase in physical activity (PA) of people. However, what is often not taken into account in many such studies is owning of other pets. The aim of this study was to compare PA levels between animal owners and non-owners and to research potential differences between owners of different kinds of animals. Methods: 111 young females of mean age 21 ± 1.2 years enrolled in this cross-sectional study. Czech version of short International physical activity questionnaire (IPAQ) was used to assess PA level, supplemented with a quest...
Visser EK, Kuypers MMF, Stam JSM, Riedstra B.Understanding equestrians' noseband tightening practices and intentions is necessary to target welfare improvement strategies. Firstly, we measured tightness in dressage and show jumping horses in The Netherlands, shortly after implementation of the two-finger rule by the Royal Dutch Equestrian Federation. Noseband tightness decreased with age, was less tight in dressage horses than in show jumpers, and was dependent on the interaction between competition level and discipline. Fifty-nine percent of the riders tightened nosebands to such an extent that they adhered to the new regulation. Second...
Bell C, Rogers S, Taylor J, Busby D.A key welfare problem for horses is that people commonly fail to recognise, and consequently neglect to resolve, equine behavioural signs of distress, worsening the welfare of the horse and potentially putting the safety of the handler at risk as a result. Members of equestrian Facebook groups were asked to view six videos and assess the horse's behaviour in each; the authors selected the videos and considered each video to demonstrate behaviour associated with negative affective states. An additional six equine behaviourists also completed the survey as an "expert comparison group" from whom ...
Hammons V, Brooks SA, Wickens C.Genetic testing offers precise and accurate data to horse owners concerning their horse's health and offers potential economic value increases of foal crops via genome-assisted selection. Despite availability of at least 96 commercially available markers, fewer than 20 are commonly used. This project seeks to identify the barriers to the incorporation of genomic tools in diverse equine operations. Based on studies examining public opinion of human medical testing, we expected that lack of genetic education and few industry requirements for testing may contribute to neutral or negative opinions...
Meisfjord Jørgensen GH, Mejdell CM, Bøe KE.Horse owners may lack knowledge about natural thermoregulation mechanisms in horses. Horses are managed intensively; usually stabled at night and turned out during the day. Some are clipped and many wear a blanket, practices which reduce the horse's ability to regulate heat dissipation. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between hair coat characteristics, body condition and infrared surface temperatures from different body parts of horses. Under standard conditions, the body surface temperature of 21 adult horses were investigated using infrared thermography. From severa...
Merlin A, Schneider J, Cazeau G, Sala C, Linster M, Foucher N, Ferry B, Delerue M, Amat JP, Tapprest J.The core of the French equine traceability system is the census database (SIRE) managed by the French horse and riding institute (IFCE). Following the death of an equine, owners are legally obliged to take charge of cadaver removal by contacting a rendering company directly or after registration on the national ATM-équidés ANGEE association (ATM) website, which proposes negotiated prices for removal and recording of the death in the SIRE database. Despite these offers, ATM notes few users. Owners are also legally obliged to return the equine's passport to the IFCE, but only 30-40 % of owners...
Pollard D, Wylie CE, Newton JR, Verheyen KLP.Euthanasia is a complex topic, with animal owners using multiple factors to shape their decision-making process. Previous epidemiological studies have described causes of equine mortality in specific populations, but there is limited evidence regarding factors contributing specifically to equine euthanasia in Great Britain (GB). This observational study used a prospective cohort design: the objectives were to describe owner-reported reasons for euthanasia, estimate the rate of euthanasia and identify associated factors in horses/ponies enrolled in a web-based epidemiological study of laminitis...
Jaqueth AL, Hathaway M, Catalano DN, Linders NC, Mottet R, Martinson KL.Social media are an ever-present part of daily life and for researchers and may be a useful platform to increase potential participant pools for Web-based surveys. Although survey usage to evaluate practices in the equine community is not new, the use of social media to advertise and enhance the usage of Web-based surveys is novel. In 2018, the University of Minnesota (UMN) equine Extension program developed and administered two Web-based surveys through the UMN equine Extension Facebook page and monthly e-newsletter. Surveys focused on industry practices and motivating factors behind the usag...
Gehlen H, Loschelder J, Walther M.Euthanasia represents a procedure with high responsibility for veterinarians in equine practice. The procedure should avoid pain and suffering for the horse and be carried out with the least possible stress for the patient and its owner. The presented study investigated the emotional impact of a horse's euthanasia procedure on the owner in order to enable development of future recommendations in improving the management of this procedure in horses. Methods: Questionnaires concerning euthanasia of a horse for horse owners and veterinarians, respectively were developed and sent by mail or publis...
Spence KL, Cardwell JM, Slater J, Rosanowski SM.The potential for an exotic disease incursion is a significant concern for the United Kingdom (UK) equine industry. Horse owners' perceptions of, and attitudes towards, exotic diseases can influence decisions to adopt disease preparedness strategies. The objectives of this study were to describe horse owners' 1) perceptions of the term 'exotic disease', and 2) attitudes towards their risk of being affected by an exotic disease. In order to address these objectives, qualitative content analysis was undertaken on data collected using two open-ended survey questions. Results: Horse owners (n =...
Rahmani V, Häyrinen L, Kareinen I, Ruohoniemi M.The progression of equine odontoclastic tooth resorption and hypercementosis (EOTRH) has not been completely evaluated, and currently, the only effective treatment is extraction of severely affected teeth. We aim to describe how the disease relates to the history and clinical findings and to report on the outcome in individual horses. This case series comprises data collected from 20 horses (age 14-29 years old) with radiographic findings of EOTRH in their incisor and/or canine teeth. Most horses affected with EOTRH in this study were admitted for dental problems, but some for other complaints...
Ziegler AL, Blikslager AT.Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are commonly used to manage a wide variety of conditions in horses, including management of colic. Flunixin meglumine is by far the most commonly used drug in the control of colic pain and inflammation and has become a go-to for not only veterinarians but also horse-owners and nonmedical equine professionals. NSAID use, however, has always been controversial in critical cases due to a high risk of adverse effects associated with their potent cyclo-oxygenase (COX) inhibition. There are two important COX isoenzymes: COX-1 is generally beneficial for ...
Tuorinsky EV, Machtinger ET.House flies can have negative consequences on the welfare of horses and other equids. Fly repellents in the form of on-animal sprays, wipes, or spot-ons are the most commonly used fly control method for horses. Many products are available, but repellent efficacy and duration of effectiveness may influence repellent choice by horse owners. A better understanding of the efficacy of common fly repellent products will help guide repellent selection to reduce fly pressure on horses. To evaluate commercially available repellents, house fly behavioral inhibition after application of three products ma...
Bowden A, Burford JH, Brennan ML, England GCW, Freeman SL.Colic is the most common emergency problem in the horse. An owner's ability to recognise colic and seek assistance is a critical first step in determining case outcome. Objective: The aim of this study was to assess horse owners' knowledge and opinions on recognising colic. Methods: Cross-sectional study. Methods: An online questionnaire was distributed to horse owners with open and closed questions on their knowledge of normal clinical parameters in the horse, confidence and approach to recognising colic (including assessment through case scenarios), and their demographics. Descriptive and ch...
Tzelos T, Morgan ER, Easton S, Hodgkinson JE, Matthews JB.Interval treatment control programmes used widely in equine helminth control have favoured the development of anthelmintic resistance worldwide. Best practice guidelines have been designed to address resistance and include the requirement for improved pasture hygiene to break helminth transmission cycles, along with anthelmintic application informed by the results of diagnostic tests to reduce selection pressure for resistance. Using an online questionnaire, this study examined uptake of measures recommended in these guidelines by UK horse owners. The survey comprised 58 questions spanning gra...
Wickens C, Arias Esquivel AM, Hendricks C, Heleski C.Several studies have indicated higher incidence of stereotypic behaviors (STBs) in Thoroughbreds. The aftercare of Off-the-Track Thoroughbreds (OTTBs) has received increased attention in the last decade; however, research on the impact of STBs on placement of OTTBs after their racing career is limited. Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance (TAA) accredits centers throughout North America that work to rehome OTTBs in a safe, welfare-friendly manner. Although the authors have suspected that having an STB would make OTTBs more challenging to rehome, this hypothesis remains to be empirically tested. The...
Hässig M, Kranz R.Animal welfare in equestrian sports is a very current and important topic for animal right groups as well as for the Swiss association for equestrian sports "Schweizerischer Verband für Pferdesport (SVPS)". The penalty commission "Sanktionskomission (SAKO)" of the SVPS reported only few to none cases of infringements of animal welfare provision on horses at a time in the past few years. This fact was criticised several times by different animal right groups in Switzerland. Therefore a survey was sent in 2017 to 544 active officials (horse show judges) of the SVPS. Overall, 146 answered questi...
Millican L, Vanderstichel R, McClure J, MacMillan K.The objectives of this study were to determine the proportion of owners of horse farms in Prince Edward Island (PEI), Canada that were aware of the (CODE) and determine demographic factors associated with awareness. A questionnaire was completed by owners at fifty horse farms. In total, 38% of the farm owners were unaware of the CODE, 48% were aware, but were not familiar with its content and only 14% used the CODE when making decisions on caring for their horses. Owners of private stables were more aware of the CODE than owners of boarding stables. The CODE awareness varied between the three...
Barker I, Freeman SL.Colic is the most common emergency problem in horses. The aims of this study were to survey costs of different referral treatments and to review insurance policies relevant to horses with colic. Data were collected retrospectively from nine equine hospitals for case costs, categorised into four different outcomes: admitted and euthanased; euthanased during or immediately after surgery; medical treatment and survived more than 24 hours; and surgical treatment and survived more than 24 hours. Data from five UK equine insurance companies were extracted and analysed using a standardised case e...
Cain JL, Foulk D, Jedrzejewski E, Stofanak H, Nielsen MK.Anthelmintic resistance in equine cyathostomin parasites is widespread. A surveillance-based parasite control program using fecal egg counts (FECs) and fecal egg count reduction tests (FECRTs) to decrease anthelmintic use and monitor treatment efficacy is recommended. The purpose of this study was to examine shifts in equine parasite control program management practices via a short course presented by the Penn State Extension, and to highlight how data collected from these programs is useful for monitoring anthelmintic efficacy on a large scale. Horse owners were enrolled after participating i...
Vitoria A, Romero A, Fuente S, Barrachina L, Vazquez FJ.This report describes a technique for standing laparoscopic vasectomy in stallions through a prospective descriptive study. A preliminary study was carried out with two experimental intact male horses and subsequently the procedure was performed in two clinical cases. These horse owners want to keep their animals in the most possible natural way, preserving its stallion behaviour in a herd without generating offspring. The horses were sedated and restrained in stocks and laparoscopic vasectomy was performed using three portal sites in both paralumbar fossae recording surgical times. A 4-cm seg...
Egan S, Brama P, McGrath D.Wearable sensing technologies are increasingly used in human and equine gait research to improve ecological validity of research findings. It is unclear how these tools have penetrated the equine industry or what perspectives industry stakeholders' hold in relation to these relatively new devices. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with Irish equine industry stakeholders to understand their perception of objective tools for biomechanical analysis in the field. The study participants came from professional/elite backgrounds in both the sport horse ( = 6) and thoroughbred ( = 6) sectors. ...
Rosanowski S, Verheyen K.The number of unwanted horses in the UK has increased in recent years. It is therefore important to identify factors that indicate whether a horse can be rehomed and how long it takes to be rehomed. Data from 1 January 2013 until 30 March 2014 were extracted from an equine rehoming charity's database. Exposure variables were examined using multivariable logistic and Cox regression. In total, 791 horses were included in the study and 410 (51.8%) were rehomed during the study period. Median time until rehomed was 39 days (IQR 24-75). Horses whose owner was prepared to transfer ownership were nea...
Haigh L, Thompson K.Equestrian activities pose significant head injury risks to participants. Yet, helmet use is not mandatory in Australia outside of selected competitions. Awareness of technical countermeasures and the dangers of equestrian activities has not resulted in widespread adoption of simple precautionary behaviors like helmet use. Until the use of helmets whilst riding horses is legislated in Australia, there is an urgent need to improve voluntary use. To design effective injury prevention interventions, the factors affecting helmet use must first be understood. To add to current understandings of the...
Goyen KA, Wright JD, Cunneen A, Henning J.Hendra virus is a zoonotic paramyxovirus, which causes severe respiratory and neurological disease in horses and humans. Since 2012, the Hendra virus sub-unit G vaccine has been available for horse vaccination in Australia. Uptake of the vaccine has been limited and spill-over events of Hendra virus infection in horses continue to occur. We conducted an online, questionnaire-based cross-sectional study of 376 horse owners belonging to a variety of different equestrian clubs in Queensland, Australia, to identify risk factors for non-vaccination against Hendra virus. A total of 43.1% (N = 162) o...
Harris PA.Equine feeding and stable management practices for horses kept in the UK vary greatly and it is probable that almost any permutation of regimen could be found somewhere. Unfortunately, there is uncertainty about the number of horses in the UK and very limited data are available on the ways horses are being fed and managed. This paper reviews some of the information that is available and provides an outline of some of the factors influencing the practices used. To a certain extent, the way UK horses are fed and managed primarily reflects the purpose for which they are kept (e.g. racing Thorough...
Regatieri IC, Eberth JE, Sarver F, Lear TL, Bailey E.Horse owners choose whether or not to train American Saddlebred horses (ASHs) to perform the 4-beat gaits called rack and slow gait. The rack and slow gait are similar to ambling gaits shown to be associated with variation in the DMRT3 gene in other breeds but are trained rather than naturally occurring gaits. A premature stop codon in the DMRT3 gene (DMRT3_Ser301STOP) caused by the Ch23:g.22999655C>A SNP has an effect on the pattern of locomotion in horses and allows for the pacing gait and strong association with performance of ambling gaits in diverse breeds. We used horse show records to i...
Agar C, Gemmill R, Hollands T, Freeman SL.The aim of the study was to determine which types of nutritional supplements were used in dressage and eventing horses, and the reasons that owners used supplements. An online questionnaire was distributed through British Eventing and Dressage websites, to collect data on demographics of owners and their horses, supplements used and their opinion on health and performance problems. Data were evaluated using descriptive analysis, Sign and Fisher's exact tests for quantitative data, and categorisation of qualitative data. In total, 599 responses met the inclusion criteria (441 dressage and 158 e...
Allison K, Taylor NM, Wilsmore AJ, Garforth C.An online survey was conducted to establish horse owners' beliefs, attitudes and practices relating to the use of anthelmintic drugs. Out of a total of 574 respondents, 89 per cent described themselves as 'leisure riders', most of whom took part in a variety of activities including eventing, show jumping, dressage, hunter trials, hunting, driving, endurance and showing. Overall, respondents were generally aware and concerned about the issue of anthelmintic resistance. Less than 60 per cent of all respondents were comfortable with their existing anthelmintic programme, and 25 per cent would lik...
Potter SJ, Bamford NJ, Harris PA, Bailey SR.The aims of this study were to (1) report the incidence of laminitis among a population of horses and ponies attending Pony Clubs in Victoria, Australia, and (2) describe the dietary and management practices of the sample population. Methods: Researchers visited 10 Pony Clubs over a 10-month period. Horse and pony owners completed a questionnaire to provide information on management relating to diet and exercise. Owners were also asked to report their animal's history of laminitis, if any. Results: From a survey population of 233 horses and ponies, 15.0% of animals (35 individuals) were report...
Maurício LS, Leme DP, Hötzel MJ.Stabled horses often experience negative emotions due to the inappropriate living conditions imposed by humans. However, identifying what emotions horses experience and what can trigger positive and negative emotions in stabled horses can be challenging. In this article we present a brief history of the study of emotions and models that explain emotions from a scientific point of view and the physiological bases and functions of emotions. We then review and discuss physiological and behavioral indicators and cognitive bias tests developed to assess emotions in horses. Hormone concentrations, b...
Jönsson L, Roepstorff L, Egenvall A, Näsholm A, Dalin G, Philipsson J.Soundness of an individual horse is important for animal welfare and owner economy. However, knowledge of health status in normal horse populations is limited due to lack of systematic health recordings. The aim of the investigation was to study the prevalence of veterinary clinical findings in 4-5-year-old Swedish warmblood riding horses, and their influence on overall health scores, where associations to future longevity has been indicated. Results: The prevalence of clinical findings in 8,281 horses examined during 1983-2005 was studied according to a standardised protocol and related to ov...
Merkies K, Copelin C, Small N, Young J.Recent concerns regarding horse welfare during competition has highlighted the occurrence of overtightened nosebands on competition horses. Current rules are often vague—e.g., “nosebands may never be so tightly fixed as to harm the horse.” To investigate the need and acceptance prior to any rule changes Equestrian Canada (EC) launched a pilot noseband measuring project. Nineteen officiating stewards measured noseband fit using the ISES taper gauge (TG) at 32 equestrian events of various disciplines in 2021. Additionally, stakeholder surveys collected data from 1528 EC members and 27 stew...
Wangdi C, Picard J, Tan R, Condon F, Dowling B, Gummow B.Determine leptospiral serodiversity, serodominant serovars and prevalence in the horse population of Northern Queensland (NQ), Australia, with special focus on the Atherton Tableland and Townsville-Burdekin regions. Methods: Cross-sectional survey. Methods: Serum samples from 429 horses originating from 172 horse-owning properties in NQ were collected at regional horse shows and veterinary clinics. Samples were analysed using a microscopic agglutination test. Owners were interviewed on potential risk factors associated with leptospirosis. Results: Of the 172 properties that submitted samples, ...
Kamran K, Akbar A, Naseem M, Samad A, Samiullah , Achakzai JK, Rehman ZU, Sohail Sajid M, Ali A.In spite of the significant importance of the donkeys () as draft animal in resource-poor countries like Pakistan, they are equines not receiving the appropriate care. They face challenges including injuries, diseases, lack of basic environment and mismanagement by their owners. The present study aims to provide a brief update on the current status of management of healthcare and the welfare of domestic donkeys using participatory epidemiological tools. These tools can help to provide better strategies for improving their productivity and inclusion in human society. This study was mainly focus...
Farmer E, Chase-Topping M, Lawson H, Clutton RE.A significant effect of gender, experience and background, i.e. an evaluator's relationship with horses as equine anaesthetists, orthopaedic surgeons, practitioners or owners, on perceptions of recovery quality after anaesthesia would reduce the validity of recovery quality scoring systems. Objective: To determine the effects of evaluator background, experience and gender on their perceptions of recovery quality; and questionnaire response rate as a function of background. Methods: Cross-sectional survey. Methods: A total of 440 potential evaluators were invited to evaluate the video-recorded ...
McGowan CM, Cottriall S.Physical therapy (physiotherapy, or PT) can be broadly defined as the restoration of movement and function and includes assessment, treatment, and rehabilitation. This review outlines the history, definition, and regulation of PT, followed by the core scientific principles of PT. Because musculoskeletal physiotherapy is the predominant subdiscipline in equine PT, encompassing poor performance, back pain syndromes, other musculoskeletal disorders, and some neuromuscular disorders, the sciences of functional biomechanics, neuromotor control, and the sensorimotor system in the spine, pelvis, and ...
Pehkonen J, Karma L, Raekallio M.No studies have focused on dental pain signs associated with periapical infection in cheek teeth (CT) of horses. Moreover, the ability of owners to recognize signs of dental pain in horses has not been reported. We hypothesized that periapical infection will usually induce pain that manifests in the behavior of the horse. Removing the infected tooth will reduce the expression of such behaviors. Owners of 47 horses whose CT had been removed because of periapical infection participated in this study. They filled an internet-based questionnaire including 23 questions about eating behavior, bit be...
Butler D, Valenchon M, Annan R, Whay HR, Mullan S.The purpose of this paper is to highlight some of the key challenges to racehorse welfare as perceived by racing industry stakeholders. The paper draws upon statements and transcripts from 10 focus group discussions with 42 participants who were taking part in a larger study investigating stakeholders' perceptions of racehorse welfare, which participants recognised as maintaining the physical and mental well-being of a performance animal. Analysis of the 68 statements participants identified as challenges produced nine themes. Among these, 26% (18 statements) of the challenges were health rela...
Murphy J, Arkins S.Several species demonstrate obvious motor laterality (sidedness, handedness) in their motor function. Motor laterality in the horse affects locomotion and subsequently equine performance during training and may have inherent safety implications for equitation. Some of the most commonly used identification features in the horse are hair whorls (trichoglyphs), since their specific location and character vary to some degree in every horse. We investigated the relationship between the hair flow of single facial hair whorls and the incidence of lateralised motor bias in 219 horses when under saddle...
Salem SE, Townsend NB, Refaai W, Gomaa M, Archer DC.Oro-dental disease can have a significant impact on equine welfare. Objective: To determine the prevalence of oro-dental disease and to identify risk factors for oro-dental disorders and poor body condition scores (BCS) in a working horse population in Egypt. Methods: Cross-sectional survey. Methods: Oro-dental examination was performed on 450 working horses in 2 Egyptian provinces. Horse and management historical data were collected and horses were assigned to no/mild, moderate and severe dental disease categories based on findings on examination. Multivariable logistic regression and general...
Bosshard S, Gerber V.It is often assumed that horses with mild respiratory clinical signs, such as mucous nasal discharge and occasional coughing, have an increased risk of developing recurrent airway obstruction (RAO). Objective: Compared to horses without any clinical signs of respiratory disease, those with occasional coughing, mucous nasal discharge, or both have an increased risk of developing signs of RAO (frequent coughing, increased breathing effort, exercise intolerance, or a combination of these) as characterized by the Horse Owner Assessed Respiratory Signs Index (HOARSI 1-4). Methods: Two half-sibling ...
Schemann K, Firestone SM, Taylor MR, Toribio JA, Ward MP, Dhand NK.A growing body of work shows the benefits of applying social cognitive behavioural theory to investigate infection control and biosecurity practices. Protection motivation theory has been used to predict protective health behaviours. The theory outlines that a perception of a lack of vulnerability to a disease contributes to a reduced threat appraisal, which results in poorer motivation, and is linked to poorer compliance with advised health protective behaviours. This study, conducted following the first-ever outbreak of equine influenza in Australia in 2007, identified factors associated wit...
Robin CA, Wylie CE, Wood JL, Newton JR.Detailed knowledge of horse populations can better facilitate effective control of equine diseases. Preliminary studies were undertaken to ascertain the type of information held on the UK's National Equine Database (NED) and to determine the geographical resolution at which mandatorily recorded owner addresses might be a suitable proxy for predicting horse locations. Results indicated that relatively few UK passport-issuing organisations requested details of where horses were kept in addition to owner address details. Examination of data on 1440 horses held on an Animal Health Trust syndromic ...
Sinclair M, Bührmann G, Gummow B.African Horsesickness (AHS) is a controlled disease in South Africa. The country is divided into an infected area and a control area. An outbreak of AHS in the control area can result in a ban of exports for at least 2 years. A retrospective epidemiological study was carried out on data collected during the 2004 AHS outbreak in the surveillance zone of the AHS control area in the Western Cape Province. The objective of this study was to describe the 2004 outbreak and compare it with the 1999 AHS outbreak in the same area. As part of the investigation, a questionnaire survey was conducted in th...
Rosanowski SM, Rogers CW, Cogger N, Benschop J, Stevenson MA.A survey was conducted to investigate biosecurity practices on non-commercial horse properties, to describe the number of visits by horse professionals and any protocols that visitors were required to follow before interacting with resident horses. Data were collected in November 2009 during a cross-sectional study of non-commercial horse properties, in New Zealand, selected using generalised random-tessellated stratified design and a self-administered postal questionnaire. Data were described and the associations between property-level factors and biosecurity practices were analysed using log...
Hii C, Dhand NK, Toribio JLML, Taylor MR, Wiethoelter A, Schembri N, Sawford K, Kung N, Moloney B, Wright T, Field H, Schemann K.Hendra virus (HeV) is an emerging bat-borne virus endemic in Australia that can be transmitted from horses to humans and has a high fatality rate for horses and people. Controversy surrounding HeV risk mitigation measures have strained the veterinarian-horse owner relationship. This study aimed to characterise the veterinarian-horse owner relationship in general and also in the context of HeV by analysing data derived from the 'Horse Owners and Hendra Virus: A Longitudinal Study to Evaluate Risk' (HHALTER) study. Australian horse owners were recruited via emails, social media and word-of-mouth...
Lees MJ, Kleider N, Tuddenham TJ.Five horses were presented because of a dermatitis of the forehead. Unlike previous reports, ventral midline dermatitis was not the major problem, and was present in only two of five cases. All five horses responded to levamisole therapy at a daily dosage of 5.5 g for one week. Owners were cautioned that repeat therapy may be necessary.
Schott HC.Chronic renal failure is a syndrome of progressive loss of renal function that results in loss of urinary concentrating ability, retention of nitrogenous and other metabolic end products, alterations in electrolyte and acid-base status, and dysfunction of several hormone systems. This article describes the prevalence, causes, clinical signs, diagnostic evaluation, and management of horses afflicted with chronic renal failure. It is hoped that this article illustrates that chronic renal failure, when detected in the earlier stages of disease, can be managed successfully in the short-term allowi...
Mohite DS, Sheikh CS, Singh S, Kalita J, Williams S, Compston PC.Farriery is a critical component of healthcare services for working equids. However, in India, an informal workforce, lack of structured training facilities and non-implementation of farriery regulations pose challenges for quality farriery. Brooke India, an equine welfare organisation, has undertaken many initiatives aiming to improve farriery services, including technical training and engagement with equid-owning communities. However, this has met with varying success. The study aimed to identify factors that prevent farriers providing quality farriery services. Focus-group discussions were ...
Liebenberg D, Piketh S, van Hamburg H.Africa horse sickness (AHS) is the most lethal infectious non-contagious horse disease and has accordingly been declared notifiable by the World Organisation for Animal Health. AHS is endemic to sub-Saharan Africa and causes considerable losses to the equestrian industry. The effect of diseases in livestock on socio-economic factors is well researched, but the effect of anthropogenic factors on the distribution of a disease is poorly understood. The purpose of the study was to assess Namibian and South African horse owners' perceptions and the effect of horse movement on AHS distribution. A cr...
Cameron A, Pollock K, Wilson E, Burford J, England G, Freeman S.End-of-life decisions for companion animals can be stressful for veterinarians and owners, and when delayed result in poor animal welfare. Delayed euthanasia has been identified as a particularly prominent issue for horses. This scoping review aimed to identify the available literature on veterinary decision-making models, which can support end-of-life planning. A protocol was preregistered, and a structured literature search was performed on six electronic databases. Publications were reviewed against specifically developed eligibility criteria. Data from original studies and narrative-type r...
