The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) and National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) will conduct a national study of health and management practices on U.S. equine operations starting in August 2026. Stakeholder input helped shape the study to ensure it meets the industry’s most important information needs.
The study will include randomly selected equine operations in all 50 States. Results will provide important information about equine care, health management and disease occurrence, use of veterinary services, and issues affecting “at-risk” equines or those that are in vocational transition.
Selected operations will receive a questionnaire in the mail in July and are encouraged to participate in the study. Participants may choose from four response options: completing the paper questionnaire, using the online survey, or taking part in a telephone or in-person interview with a NASS enumerator. Study findings will be published on the APHIS website at National Animal Health Monitoring System (NAHMS) and will offer valuable information for equine owners, industry, and other stakeholders.
NASS and APHIS are legally required to keep respondent identities and farm information confidential. Data will be used for statistical purposes only. APHIS will publish the study results in aggregate form in accordance with the highest statistical standards.
Previous NAHMS Equine Study results, including our most recent 2015 study, are available on the APHIS website. Equine owners interested in their eligibility for the 2026 study can visit the NASS Respondent Portal at www.agcounts.usda.gov.
Questions about this or other NAHMS studies may be sent to nahms@usda.gov.
Comments