References
Assessing quality of life in older horses
Abstract
The equine population is ageing and equine geriatric medicine is a growing field. With increasing horse age, both the frequency of veterinary attention and the provision of several preventive health care measures are reduced. Moreover, owners appear to under-recognise several prevalent age-associated diseases, often considering clinical signs as normal signs of ageing. There is a high burden of chronic disease within the geriatric equine population, which may have a detrimental effect on quality of life. In the absence of a validated equine quality of life measurement scale, this review highlights factors and domains that should be evaluated in a comprehensive assessment of the quality of life in older horses. The potential benefits of assessing quality of life as a routine component of veterinary care for older horses are also summarised.
As is the case in the human population (Office for National Statistics, 2019), through increasing life expectancy, the equine population is ageing (Welsh et al, 2016), comprising a considerable proportion (28–34%) of geriatric animals (McGowan et al, 2010; Ireland et al, 2011a; Bushell and Murray, 2016). Similar to the situation described for humans (Haywood et al, 2005), older horses represent a very diverse sector of the equine population and this diversity is reflected across age, health status and healthcare requirements. As horses get older, owners frequently make considerable changes to their management practices, including diet and exercise (Ireland et al, 2011a). However, there is limited available information regarding the reasons for, and impact of, horse owners making these changes. Weight management and use of supplements were reported to be the most common aspects of daily management that owners changed as their horse aged (Bushell and Murray, 2016). Dietary alterations such as the increased use of hay replacers and complete chopped fibre or mash feeds are likely to be beneficial in older horses with advanced dental disease (Ireland et al, 2011a), whereas the widespread use of in-feed supplements, despite a paucity of evidence regarding their oral bioavailability and efficacy, may represent an area for improved owner education (Bushell and Murray, 2016). Furthermore, with increasing horse age, the frequency of routine veterinary attention and several preventive healthcare measures, including farrier care and vaccination, are reduced (Mellor et al, 2001; McGowan et al, 2010; Ireland et al, 2011b).
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