Survey of human-horse relationships and veterinary care for geriatric horses.

This research evaluates the relationship between horse owners and their geriatric or non-geriatric horses, and explores the factors that impact decisions regarding veterinary care. The study discovers that companion and retired horses are often older, and death from chronic illness in these older horses leads to higher levels of grief in their carers. The most crucial factor in deciding on expensive or long-term medical care for horses is the potential for the horse to continue living comfortably.

Study Design and Sample

• The study employed a descriptive, cross-sectional, survey-based design to gather data.
• The sample consisted of 2,879 participants who either owned or leased one or more horses.
• The researchers reached out to potential survey participants through social media and online horse forums.

Survey Content

• The online survey requested information regarding each participant’s horses, particularly focusing on measures of attachment, experiences with the death of a horse, and decision-making around veterinary care.
• Data was collected on both the owners’ primary horses (those they interacted with most) and secondary horses.
• The horses were categorized based on age, being labelled as geriatric if they were 20 years or older, and non-geriatric if they were younger.

Key Findings

• Geriatric horses, or those aged 20 years and older, were found to be more frequently described as companion animals, retired, or part of a business, and less often identified as competition horses.
• These older horses were owned or leased for significantly longer periods than younger horses, although the level of attachment felt by the owners was not different based on the horse’s age.
• When a horse’s death occurred in the year prior to the survey, cases where euthanasia was used resulted in higher levels of grief for the owner.
• The death of older horses was most often due to chronic illness and led to significantly higher levels of grief in comparison to the death of younger horses.
• The deciding factor when considering expensive or prolonged medical treatment was primarily the horse’s potential quality of life.
• Owners of older horses often made various accommodations for their care.

Conclusions and Relevance

• The findings offer valuable initial insight into the relationships people have with their older horses.
• Understanding how owners perceive their horses and how they make decisions regarding complicated veterinary care can greatly improve veterinarian-client communication.