Survey results suggest that dog owners in some demographics share some understanding of the conditions under which they would seek veterinary help.
Whether they seek this care is related to the availability of care, which includes the expected cost of services, easy transport to a clinic, consultation hours and language differences, and the owner’s trust in veterinarians 5 in Veterinary Sciences. These answers varied depending on the demographics of the dog owners.
“This finding is in contrast to previous studies that believed that race and ethnicity were the main predictors of decision to seek pet veterinary services,” the article said.
The authors, a research team from North Carolina State University, conducted a survey of 858 adults who owned dogs and answered questions about whether they would seek veterinary care under 18 circumstances. Respondents also provided demographics about themselves and their dogs, and answered questions about their relationships with their dogs, prior veterinary care, and barriers to using veterinary care.
Results show that overall, participants were most likely to seek veterinary care for their dogs in circumstances such as trauma, poison ingestion, and the need for end-of-life treatment, and least likely in conditions such as vomiting and diarrhea and weight gain.
Certain dog owners may be disproportionately affected by the costs, especially those of Native American or Asian descent, those earning less than $ 25,000 a year, young dog owners, and owners with no formal training, the article says.
“Across all populations, cost appeared to be the biggest barrier to veterinary care. 49.6% of respondents said cost was a challenge,” the article reads.
Opening times and easy transport were the second and third most common barriers to long-term care, each affecting around 30% of respondents. The article notes that just over one in six respondents cited a lack of trust in veterinarians as an obstacle to seeking veterinary care. This reaction was more common among male dog owners, Black or Native American people, and college graduates.
“Interestingly, the” Poor Prior Vets “barrier was not an issue for any demographic,” the article reads.
Around one in eight respondents named language differences as an obstacle.
Read the article.