Survey of UK horse owners' knowledge of equine arboviruses and disease vectors.
Authors: Chapman Gail Elaine, Baylis Matthew, Archer Debra C
Journal: The Veterinary record
Summary
# Editorial Summary: UK Horse Owners' Knowledge of Equine Arboviruses With globalisation and climate change extending the geographic range of arthropod-borne viruses, the risk of arboviral disease establishing in northern Europe has become a genuine concern for equine health and the broader industry. Chapman and colleagues surveyed 327 UK horse owners via online questionnaire (May–July 2016) to assess their awareness of equine arboviruses and their vectors, recognising that early disease identification by horse owners could be crucial in containing outbreaks. Although the majority could visually identify biting midges (71.2%) and mosquitoes (65.4%), this recognition did not translate to understanding of disease transmission: only 31.4% and 35.9% respectively knew these insects carry equine infectious diseases, whilst just 7.4% and 16.2% could name a specific disease transmitted by each vector. Concerningly, only 13.1% and 12.5% of respondents identified clinical signs of African horse sickness and West Nile virus respectively. These findings indicate that substantial educational deficits exist amongst the horse-owning public, and highlight an urgent need for targeted awareness campaigns covering arboviral disease identification, clinical presentation and evidence-based prevention strategies should disease risk escalate in the UK.
Read the full abstract on PubMed
Practical Takeaways
- •Horse owners can visually recognize disease vectors but lack understanding of disease transmission risk—veterinarians should proactively educate clients about arboviral diseases and their vectors
- •Early disease detection by owners is unlikely without targeted education; develop clear client materials showing clinical signs of African horse sickness and West Nile virus
- •Prepare educational resources now for rapid deployment if arboviral disease risk increases, as owners currently lack baseline knowledge needed for early outbreak detection
Key Findings
- •71.2% of horse owners correctly identified biting midges and 65.4% identified mosquitoes from photographs, but only 31.4% and 35.9% respectively knew these vectors transmit equine infectious diseases
- •Only 7.4% of respondents could correctly name a disease transmitted by biting midges and 16.2% could name one transmitted by mosquitoes
- •Clinical sign recognition was poor, with only 13.1% identifying African horse sickness signs and 12.5% recognizing West Nile virus signs
- •Educational campaigns focused on arboviral disease awareness, clinical signs, and prevention strategies are needed to prepare horse owners for potential disease outbreaks