“We’ve learned to live with it”—A qualitative study of Australian horse owners’ attitudes, perceptions and practices in response to Hendra virus

Publication date: 1 May 2017 Source:Preventive Veterinary Medicine, Volume 140 Author(s): Anke K. Wiethoelter, Kate Sawford, Nicole Schembri, Melanie R. Taylor, Navneet K. Dhand, Barbara Moloney, Therese Wright, Nina Kung, Hume E. Field, Jenny-Ann L.M.L. Toribio Hendra virus causes sporadic zoonotic disease in Australia following spill over from flying foxes to horses and from horses to people. Prevention and risk mitigation strategies such as vaccination of horses or biosecurity and property management measures are widely publicised, but hinge on initiative and action taken by horse owners as they mediate management, care and treatment of their animals. Hence, underlying beliefs, values and attitudes of horse owners influence their uptake of recommended risk mitigation measures. We used a qualitative approach to investigate attitudes, perceptions and self-reported practices of horse owners in response to Hendra virus to gain a deeper understanding of their decision-making around prevention measures. Data presented here derive from a series of in-depth interviews with 27 horse owners from Hendra virus ‘hot spot’ areas in New South Wales and Queensland. Interviews explored previous experience, perceptions and resulting behaviour as well as communication around Hendra virus. All interviews were recorded, transcribed verbatim and analysed in NVivo using thematic analysis. Analysis revealed four major themes: perception of Hendra virus as a risk and factors influe...
Source: Preventive Veterinary Medicine - Category: Veterinary Research Source Type: research