167 Improving communications surrounding equine necropsies

Necropsy is a valuable tool in veterinary medicine to determine an animal's cause of death, surveillance disease, and provide educational opportunities to students and veterinarians. Despite these benefits, the number of equines submitted for necropsy is declining. Discussing post-mortem options such as necropsy or mortality management can be emotionally challenging for owners even before losing a horse. Consequently, the terminology used when communicating about necropsies may impact horse owners’ perceptions and ultimately their decisions when considering end-of-life options for their horse. Therefore, an online survey was developed to assess horse owner comfort with terms commonly used in relation to necropsies and to identify who horse owners consult with when learning about necropsies. The survey had an estimated completion time of 10 min and consisted of 30 to 40 multiple choice questions that utilized conditional branching based on experience having a necropsy performed. The survey was available February through July 2022 and was distributed via social media and an electronic newsletter. Data analyses were conducted using Pearson's Chi-squared tests with a significance level set at 0.05. The survey yielded 1,366 usable responses. The majority of respondents were female (95%), between 41 and 60 years of age (40%), and had long-term involvementin the equine industry (58%). Despite high familiarity with the terms before taking the survey, respondents were more familiar with autopsy (99.5%) and postmortem examination (93.7%) compared with necropsy (89.9%; P < 0.05). Horse owners were most comfortable using the terms autopsy and postmortem examination (P < 0.001) when referring to a necropsy. Additionally, compared with the term carcass, horse owners were more comfortable using the terms body and mortality (P < 0.001). Of those that have previously discussed a necropsy (71.7%), many consulted their primary veterinarian (64.4%), another horse owner (63.4%), and/or a friend or family member (51.2%). If deciding to perform a necropsy, 85.8% of respondents indicated they would consult with their primary veterinarian. The results of this study highlight horse owner preferences for certain terms when communicating about necropsies. By employing use of these terms, veterinarians may improve their message delivery when consulting with their clients and more effectively advocate for a necropsy. Additionally, all educators, regulators, and other professionals that work with horse owners in areas of mortality management can benefit by using terms that better suit their audience.