Vets needed to help test equine quality of life (HRQL) assessment tool

Zoetis are inviting veterinarians to contribute to the research and development of an innovative solution to assess health-related quality of life in horses. Vets simply need to encourage their equine clients to complete a short prototype survey (approximately 5–8 minutes) and verify each horse’s health status via a brief questionnaire (around 4 minutes).

Veterinarians who contribute will gain early insight into a scientifically validated HRQL instrument designed to:

• Enhance clinical decision-making by providing an objective measure of a horse’s well-being.
• Improve client communication with clear, evidence-based data on quality of life.
• Support preventive care and treatment planning through better monitoring of health outcomes.

The results of the two questionnaires will be used to develop a novel scoring algorithm to measure the impact of health on a horse’s quality of life. While horse caretakers are already being recruited, the success of this pilot depends on input from a diverse range of caretakers across all sectors of the equine community.

Prof Jacky Reid, the creator of VetMetrica^TM tools for companion animals and scientific lead, stresses that the support of vets and nurses is pivotal to delivering a valid and reliable measurement tool, one that has the potential to transform the welfare of horses worldwide.

If you would like to participate, or if you would like more information contact Dr Cory Noble at cory.noble@zoetis.com.