Smith Rebecca, Furtado Tamzin, Brigden Charlotte, Pinchbeck Gina, Perkins Elizabeth
Institute of Infection, Veterinary and Ecological Sciences, University of Liverpool, Leahurst Campus, Chester High Road, Neston, Cheshire CH64 7TE, UK.
Equine Department, University Centre Myerscough, St Michael's Road, Bilsborrow, Preston PR3 0RY, UK.
Animals (Basel). 2022 Oct 26;12(21):2937. doi: 10.3390/ani12212937.
Human assessment of equine wellbeing is fundamental to ensuring the optimal care of domestic horses. However, terminology associated with wellbeing is still not fully defined and there are currently no validated quality of life (QoL) assessment tools. Furthermore, little is known about what equine wellbeing or QoL means to horse owners, or how their beliefs impact on the management decisions they make for their horse. This study sought to establish how UK leisure horse owners use wellbeing-related terminology by exploring their accounts within a focus group setting. Four online focus group discussions (FGD) were held and qualitative data were collected. FGDs involved a semi-structured discussion, followed by a group activity to compare seven equine wellbeing-related terms of interest introduced by the facilitator. The collected data were analysed using a constructivist grounded theory approach, and also by content analysis, to examine the frequency and subjective meaning of the terms of interest. The results showed that horse owners did not clearly delineate between different terms, rather, they used the terms in the context of their own assessments of their horse. The meanings assigned to what owners experienced with their horse were individual and subjective, shaped by past experiences, relationships with their animal, and peers or social groups. This individualised construction of equine wellbeing impacted on the meaning conveyed when using wellbeing-related terminology. In this study, we extend the literature on equine wellbeing terminology usage, and highlight differences between the academic literature and the real-world experiences of horse owners.
对马的健康状况进行人为评估是确保对家养马匹进行最佳护理的基础。然而，与健康相关的术语仍未得到充分定义，目前也没有经过验证的生活质量（QoL）评估工具。此外，对于马的健康或生活质量对马主意味着什么，以及他们的信念如何影响他们为马匹做出的管理决策，我们知之甚少。本研究旨在通过在焦点小组环境中探索英国休闲马主的描述，来确定他们如何使用与健康相关的术语。我们进行了四次在线焦点小组讨论（FGD）并收集了定性数据。焦点小组讨论包括一次半结构化讨论，随后是一项小组活动，用于比较主持人引入的七个与马的健康相关的术语。我们使用建构主义扎根理论方法以及内容分析法对收集到的数据进行分析，以研究相关术语的出现频率和主观意义。结果表明，马主并未明确区分不同的术语，相反，他们是在对自己马匹的评估背景下使用这些术语。马主赋予自己与马相处经历的意义是个人化且主观的，受到过去的经历、与动物的关系以及同伴或社会群体的影响。这种对马的健康的个性化构建影响了使用与健康相关术语时所传达的意义。在本研究中，我们扩展了关于马的健康术语使用的文献，并强调了学术文献与马主现实世界经历之间的差异。
