2022 Equine community needs assessment survey

Abstract

To stay up-to-date with the demographics, interests, and needs of the equine community, equine extension programs commonly conduct so called “needs assessment surveys”. The main goals of the 2022 Rutgers Equine Science Center (ESC) needs assessment survey were to: 1) characterize the equine community, 2) identify information sources used by the equine community, 3) assess the usefulness of selected equine-related services and programs, and 4) determine the perceived importance of selected equine-related issues. An anonymous online survey was distributed through the Rutgers ESC's email list, a press release, and social media. Analysis-eligible surveys were received from n = 493. Most participants were female (92.7 %), 36-60 years of age (48.4 %), white (88.8 %), and horse owners (87.8 %). The top three sources of equine-related information used were 1) personal knowledge (95.7 %), 2) the veterinarian (93.7 %), and 3) the farrier (83.7 %). The survey showed that the provision of horse health information is the most useful service that the Rutgers ESC specifically can provide (79.3 %). This service may also be most useful for other extension programs, but a follow-up study is needed for clarification. The five equine-related issues most often considered to be extremely important were “Lameness and Soundness” (76.5 %), “Ethical Use of Horses” (73.2 %), “Nutrition” (63.9 %), “Right to Farm” (56.8 %), and “Care of Old Horses” (55.6 %). The survey provided insights into the current demographics of the equine community, highlighted personal knowledge, veterinarians and farriers as important information sources, and elucidated “Lameness and Soundness” as the most important equine-related issue.