An Investigation into Equine Nutrition Knowledge and Educational Needs of Equine Veterinarians.
Abstract: This study investigated equine nutrition knowledge and educational needs of licensed veterinarians in the United States who were exclusively or predominately equine practitioners. It found veterinarians regard their peers as an important resource of nutritional knowledge, ranking ahead of all other sources except a PhD equine nutritionist. Interestingly, only 21% of veterinarians felt good about their knowledge level in equine nutrition after graduating from veterinary school. Although veterinarians in this study reported equine nutrition to be an area of weakness, 75% had not pursued continuing education in the field of nutrition within the last year. Additionally, they devoted only 65 minutes per year on average to improving their knowledge of equine nutrition, yet the majority (82.2%) had been providing nutritional advice to clients. This study revealed that time spent practicing veterinary medicine increases (p < .001) a veterinarian's self-perceived knowledge level of equine nutrition, shifting from just below average after graduation from veterinary school to just above average at the time of this study. The majority (70%) of veterinarians in this study believe nutrition is very important in their practice philosophy, and 71% showed interest in taking online continuing education courses; thus, curriculum should be developed and offered in areas of need as identified by this study. These areas include insulin resistance, equine gastric ulcer syndrome, equine metabolic syndrome, performance horses, equine pituitary pars intermedia dysfunction, equine polysaccharide storage myopathy, and arthritis/joint pain, along with how to assess nutritional status during general wellness examinations.
Publication Date: 2022-02-10 PubMed ID: 35143362DOI: 10.3138/jvme-2021-0121Google Scholar: Lookup
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- Journal Article
- Education
- Equine Diseases
- Equine Health
- Equine Metabolic Syndrome
- Equine Science
- Horse Management
- Horse Owners
- Nutrition
- Performance Horses
- Pituitary Pars Intermedia Dysfunction
- Polysaccharide Storage Myopathy
- Reproduction
- Survey Study
- Veterinary Care
- Veterinary Medicine
- Veterinary Practice
- Veterinary Procedure
- Veterinary Research
Summary
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This research discusses the equine nutrition knowledge and the perceived educational needs of veterinarians who predominantly work with horses in the United States. It also examines the sources from where these veterinarians gain their knowledge, how confident they feel about this knowledge, and identifies areas where they can improve.
Study Overview
In this study, veterinarians’ existing knowledge about equine nutrition was investigated. The research aimed to understand how these professionals perceive their own knowledge after graduating from veterinary school. Lastly, the study sought feedback on interest levels for online continuing education courses on equine nutrition.
Findings
- The study discovered that a large proportion of veterinarian practitioners view their peers as reliable sources of nutrition knowledge, with only PhD equine nutritionists ranked higher.
- However, a small percentage (21%) of veterinarians felt satisfied with their knowledge levels about equine nutrition upon graduation from veterinary school.
- Despite 75% of veterinarians acknowledging equine nutrition as one of their weaknesses, they hadn’t pursued any further education in this field within the past year.
- The average time spent enhancing their nutritional knowledge was remarkably low, at 65 minutes per year, despite the fact that more than 80% regularly gave nutritional advice to clients.
- The research showed a positive correlation between the duration of practice and a veterinarian’s self-perceived knowledge level about equine nutrition, wherein the vets’ nutrition knowledge rating improved from slightly below average after graduation to slightly above average at the time of the study.
Interest in Further Learning
- 70% of the veterinarians surveyed considered nutrition highly important in their practice.
- 71% expressed interest in enrolling in online continuing education courses related to equine nutrition.
Recommended Areas of Study
The research suggested that subsequent curriculums should focus on areas of need as identified by this study. These include:
- Insulin resistance
- Equine gastric ulcer syndrome
- Equine metabolic syndrome
- Nutrition for performance horses
- Equine pituitary pars intermedia dysfunction
- Equine polysaccharide storage myopathy
- Arthritis/joint pain
- Nutritional status assessment during general wellness exams
Cite This Article
APA
Nichols JL, Robinson JS, Hiney KM, Terry R, Ramsey JW.
(2022).
An Investigation into Equine Nutrition Knowledge and Educational Needs of Equine Veterinarians.
J Vet Med Educ, 50(2), 183-191.
https://doi.org/10.3138/jvme-2021-0121 Publication
Researcher Affiliations
- Bluebonnet Feeds, 100 Mill St. SE, Ardmore, OK 73401 USA.
- Department of Agricultural Education, Communications and Leadership, and Associate Director, Institute for Teaching and Learning Excellence, Oklahoma State University, 304B PIO Building, Stillwater, OK 74078 USA.
- Animal and Food Sciences and Extension Specialist for Horses, Oklahoma State University, 201J Animal Sciences, Stillwater, OK 74074 USA.
- Department of Agricultural Education, Communications and Leadership, Oklahoma State University, 449 Agricultural Hall, Stillwater, OK 74078 USA.
- Department of Agricultural Education, Communications and Leadership, Oklahoma State University, 449 Agricultural Hall, Stillwater, OK 74078 USA.
MeSH Terms
- Animals
- Humans
- Curriculum
- Education, Continuing
- Education, Distance
- Education, Veterinary
- Horses
- Surveys and Questionnaires
- Veterinarians / psychology
- Veterinarians / statistics & numerical data
- Clinical Competence / statistics & numerical data
- Animal Nutritional Physiological Phenomena
- Needs Assessment
- United States
- Licensure
- Male
- Female
- Adult
- Middle Aged
Citations
This article has been cited 2 times.- Pimenta J, Cotovio M. Equine Veterinarian Perspectives on Mucocutaneous Tumors in Horses: A Survey-Based Study in Portugal. Animals (Basel) 2025 Jun 23;15(13).
- Noble GK. Horse Husbandry-Nutrition, Management and Welfare. Animals (Basel) 2023 Jan 1;13(1).
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