Newsdate: Monday December 2, 12022, 10:00 am
Location: GUELPH, Ontario

Do you board a horse? Do you compete? What would happen if a horse brought an infectious disease home? The Ontario Veterinary College at the University of Guelph is looking for equine facilities to participate in a new equine biosecurity study investigating quarantine measures, outbreak scenarios and simulations.

Horse looking out of stall on a sunny day

This research study could help your facility evaluate its ability to maintain equine herd health and welfare.
© 2016 by Stacey Bates New window.

What is the study?

This research seeks to examine the effectiveness of a quarantine protocol for an equestrian facility in the case of a potential spread of an infectious pathogen. We also hope to interview equestrian facility owners about the perceptions of risk of travel to off-property equestrian events and existing biosecurity procedures at home facilities.

Why should you participate?

With most events in Ontario lasting no more than 4 days, horses can then return to their home facility before showing clinical symptoms of disease, putting the home facility herd at risk. This research study could help your facility evaluate its ability to maintain equine herd health and welfare. Additionally, your insight can have an impact on expectations and importance of quarantine protocols and help inform existing network simulations for equine infectious disease.

Who can participate?

If your facility engages in off-property events, locate within 90 minutes of Guelph or Toronto, is between 5 and 20 stalls in size with more than one horse owner boarding their horse on the property, does not share its physical space with another equestrian business and you are 18 years of age or older, please consider enrolling in this study or forward this information to your peers who may be interested in this study.

Criteria for inclusion/exclusion in the study:

You must satisfy the following criteria to be included in this study:

Be an adult over the age of 18. Have horses in Ontario that engage in off property events for the purpose of sport, training, recreation. Facility is not too large, not too small. Too small: only one owner OR 5 or less horses. Too large: over 20 indoor living horses OR multiple businesses operating within same barn structure.

Staff available to walk through the facility when research team is performing for Glo Germ (For liability and safety). If you do not fulfill any one of the above mentioned criteria, you will not be able to participate in this study.

The Study questionnaire should take approximately 5-10 minutes. If your responses correspond with the eligible criteria you may be contacted for an interview.

Please find additional details in the document below:

Information letter and consent document facility owners and managers

Press release by The Ontario Veterinary College at the University of Guelph