The accuracy of the National Equine Database in relation to vector-borne disease risk modelling of horses in Great Britain.
Abstract: The National Equine Database (NED) contains information on the size and distribution of the horse population, but the data quality remains unknown. These data could assist with surveillance, research and contingency planning for equine infectious disease outbreaks. Objective: 1) To assess the extent of obsolete and missing data from NED, 2) evaluate the extent of spatial separation between horse and owner location and 3) identify relationships between spatial separation and land use. Methods: Two questionnaires were used to assess data accuracy in NED utilising local authority passport inspections and distribution of questionnaires to 11,000 horse owners. A subset of 1010 questionnaires was used to assess horse-owner geographic separation. Results: During 2005-2010, 17,048 passports were checked through local authority inspections. Of these, 1558 passports (9.1%; 95% confidence interval [CI] 8.7-9.5%) were noncompliant, with 963 (5.6%; 95% CI 5.3-6.0%) containing inaccurate information and 595 (3.5%; 95% CI 3.2-3.8%) classified as missing. Of 1382 questionnaires completed by horse owners, 380 passports were obsolete (27.5%; 95% CI 25.2-29.9%), with 162 (11.7%; 95% CI 10.0-13.4%) being retained for deceased horses and 218 (15.8%; 95% CI 13.9-17.7%) having incorrect ownership details. Fifty-three per cent (95% CI 49.9-56.1%) of owners kept their horse(s) at home and 92% (95% CI 90.3-93.7%) of horses resided within 10 km of their owners. Conclusions: Data from a small sample survey suggest the majority of data on NED are accurate but a proportion of inaccuracies exist that may cause delay in locating horses and contacting owners during a disease outbreak. The probability that horses are located in the same postcode sector as the owner's home address is larger in rural areas. Appropriate adjustment for population size, horse-owner spatial separation and land usage would facilitate meaningful use of the national horse population derived from NED for risk modelling of incursions of equine diseases into Great Britain.
© 2012 EVJ Ltd.
Publication Date: 2013-01-07 PubMed ID: 23294172DOI: 10.1111/evj.12018Google Scholar: Lookup
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- Journal Article
- Research Support
- Non-U.S. Gov't
- Diagnosis
- Disease control
- Disease Diagnosis
- Disease Etiology
- Disease Management
- Disease Outbreaks
- Disease Prevalence
- Disease Surveillance
- Disease Transmission
- Disease Treatment
- Epidemiology
- Equine Diseases
- Equine Health
- Horse Owners
- Horses
- Public Health
- Vector-borne disease
- Veterinary Care
- Veterinary Medicine
- Veterinary Research
- Veterinary Science
Summary
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The study focuses on evaluating the accuracy of the National Equine Database (NED) which holds information on horse populations, and its use in risk modelling for horse infections in Great Britain. It finds that despite some inaccuracies and obsolete data, it’s mostly dependable, but improvements are necessary for effective use in disease risk modelling.
Objective and Methods
- The purpose of this study is to assess the quantity of obsolete and missing data in the National Equine Database (NED), a resource that contains key information on distribution and population size of horses in Great Britain. It also aims to evaluate the extent of spatial separation between the horse and its owner’s locations, as well as the relationships between such separation and land usage.
- This assessment was executed using two questionnaires – one that analyzed the local authority passport inspections data from 2005 to 2010, and another distributed to 11,000 horse owners to assess geographical separation between them and their horses. A subset of 1010 questionnaires was used for this specific task.
Results
- Based on local authority inspections, of the 17,048 passports reviewed between 2005 and 2010, 1,558 (9.1%) were found to be noncompliant. Among the noncompliant passports, 963 (5.6%) contained inaccurate data, while 595 (3.5%) were classified as missing.
- From the owner questionnaires, out of the 1,382 completed, 380 horse passports were considered obsolete – with 162 retained for deceased horses and 218 holding incorrect ownership information.
- The survey results also showed that more than half of the horse owners (53%) kept their horses at home, and 92% of horses lived within 10 km of their owners’ homes.
Conclusions
- The data suggests that a majority of the information in NED is accurate. However, a significant proportion of inaccuracies along with obsolete and missing data might lead to delays in the process of locating horses and contacting their owners in situations of disease outbreak.
- The chances of horses being located in the same postal sector as their owners were found to be higher in rural areas than in urban ones.
- The article concludes by advocating for adjustments in population size considerations, spatial separation between horse-owners, and land usage to allow the NED to be used more effectively when modeling disease risk among equine populations in Great Britain.
Cite This Article
APA
Robin CA, Lo Iacono G, Gubbins S, Wood JL, Newton JR.
(2013).
The accuracy of the National Equine Database in relation to vector-borne disease risk modelling of horses in Great Britain.
Equine Vet J, 45(3), 302-308.
https://doi.org/10.1111/evj.12018 Publication
Researcher Affiliations
- Epidemiology and Disease Surveillance, Animal Health Trust, Suffolk, UK. charlotte.robin@aht.org.uk
MeSH Terms
- Animals
- Communicable Diseases / epidemiology
- Communicable Diseases / transmission
- Communicable Diseases / veterinary
- Data Collection
- Databases, Factual / standards
- Horse Diseases / epidemiology
- Horse Diseases / transmission
- Horses
- Insect Vectors / physiology
- Models, Biological
- Risk Factors
- Surveys and Questionnaires
- Time Factors
- United Kingdom / epidemiology
Grant Funding
- BBS/E/I/00001444 / Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council
Citations
This article has been cited 4 times.- McGilvray TA, Stevens KB, Spence KL, Rosanowski SM, Slater J, Cardwell JM. Spatiotemporal patterns in British racing and equestrian sports: Implications for pathogen transmission. Equine Vet J 2026 Mar;58(2):497-507.
- Farchati H, Merlin A, Saussac M, Dornier X, Dhollande M, Garon D, Tapprest J, Sala C. Home Sweet Home: New Insights Into the Location of Equine Premises in France and Keeping Habits to Inform Health Prevention and Disease Surveillance. Front Vet Sci 2021;8:701749.
- Spence KL, O'Sullivan TL, Poljak Z, Greer AL. Descriptive analysis of horse movement networks during the 2015 equestrian season in Ontario, Canada. PLoS One 2019;14(7):e0219771.
- Lo Iacono G, Robin CA, Newton JR, Gubbins S, Wood JL. Where are the horses? With the sheep or cows? Uncertain host location, vector-feeding preferences and the risk of African horse sickness transmission in Great Britain. J R Soc Interface 2013 Jun 6;10(83):20130194.
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