Evelien Deelen

EMAILED: This research explored how horse owners in the American Inland Northwest understand and manage equine illness by extending ethnomedical theory into multispecies contexts. We often think of disease as a biological problem, but research on human health shows that culture, experience, and social relationships are factors that shape how people interpret and respond to sickness. This study asked whether similar processes influence how people recognize and respond to illness in animals. The study draws on two years of ethnographic fieldwork, and includes participant observation, interviews, and surveys with horse owners across the region. The findings show that horse owners do not rely on veterinary science alone. Instead, they combine veterinary advice with personal experience, moral beliefs, conversations with other horse people, and established horse-care traditions within their communities. Horse owners recognize illness through close, ongoing relationships with their animals. Because horses cannot speak, owners pay attention to subtle changes in behavior, movement, and appearance. They interpret these signs through what they know about their individual horse and through shared ideas within their community. This research shows that animal health is not just biological; it is also cultural. By examining how people make sense of illness in horses, this study expands our understanding of health and care beyond humans and highlights the central role of relationships in recognizing and managing illness