Disease prevalence in geriatric horses in the United Kingdom: Veterinary clinical assessment of 200 cases

• Published in: Equine veterinary journal 2012-01, Vol.44 (1), p.101-106
• Main Authors: IRELAND, J. L., CLEGG, P. D., McGOWAN, C. M., McKANE, S. A., CHANDLER, K. J., PINCHBECK, G. L.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: aged; Aging; Animals; Body Weight; clinical signs; Cross-Sectional Studies; Data Collection; Disease; disease prevalence; Eye Diseases - epidemiology; Eye Diseases - veterinary; Heart Diseases - epidemiology; Heart Diseases - veterinary; horse; Horse Diseases - epidemiology; Horses; Respiratory Tract Diseases - epidemiology; Respiratory Tract Diseases - veterinary; Skin Diseases - epidemiology; Skin Diseases - veterinary; Surveys and Questionnaires; United Kingdom - epidemiology; Veterinarians; veterinary examination
• ISSN: 0425-1644; 2042-3306
• DOI: 10.1111/j.2042-3306.2010.00361.x

Summary Reasons for performing study: Geriatric horses (aged ≥15 years) represent a substantial proportion of the equine population, yet few studies have investigated the prevalence of diseases within this population in the UK. Objectives: To describe the findings of veterinary clinical examination of 200 geriatric horses and ponies in north west England and north Wales, and to assess the effect of animal age and type (horse or pony) on the presence or absence of clinical signs and veterinary diagnosed health problems. Methods: From responses to a cross‐sectional postal questionnaire survey of owners of geriatric horses (n = 918/1144), 200 horses were randomly selected to receive a veterinary clinical examination covering the major body systems. Results: Twenty‐six percent of animals were overweight (body condition score, BCS, >3/5) and 4.5% were underweight (BCS