Factors Influencing Equine Affiliate Opinion on Reporting of Equine Strangles in the United States.

This research studies the opinions of people involved in the equine industry (like horse owners and trainers) on the reporting of equine strangles in the United States. The study found that the majority of respondents believe there should be more comprehensive reporting on this contagious disease affecting horses.

Introduction to the Study

• This study explores the opinions of stakeholders in the horse industry (nicknamed ‘equine affiliates’) including horse owners, business owners/trainers, breeders, and barn managers on the reporting of a disease known as equine strangles.
• While this infectious disease is reportable in all the states, there is no uniform reporting across the US. Regulations on reporting vary greatly among the states and there are no mandatory, comprehensive databases for tracking the disease’s prevalence, implying that existing reporting methods may be less efficient.

The Purpose and Method of Study

• The purpose of this study was to gather insights from the people directly affected by this disease about the sufficiency and effectiveness of the reporting system.
• A total of 518 equine affiliates living within the United States were involved in this study.
• These affiliates were given a structured survey online to gather their views on the topic.

Results from the study

• The respondents’ opinions varied: some wanted the disease to be closely monitored at a national level, others wanted mandatory reporting of confirmed cases to a central forum, while the rest preferred having the disease as notifiable at a national level, or notifiable and actionable.
• Those who viewed strangles as an “important” or “very important” disease were more likely to favour increased reporting.
• Similarly, participants who were more knowledgeable about the disease ranked it as being more important.
• Those who perceived their horses at medium or high risk of acquiring the disease were 2.76 times more likely to rank strangles as important or very important.
• Interestingly, a majority of the respondents (78.5%) advocated for increased reporting of the disease.

Implication of the findings

• Findings from this study contribute valuable data about the views of stakeholders in the horse industry on the reporting of strangles.
• These views can potentially inform future policy decisions regarding the control and management of this disease.
• This could potentially lead to the development of comprehensive and uniform reporting regulations across the United States, improving the management of equine strangles.