AUTHOR=Dai Francesca , Rausk Julia , Aspegren John , Huhtinen Mirja , Cannas Simona , Minero Michela 

TITLE=Use of Detomidine Oromucosal Gel for Alleviation of Acute Anxiety and Fear in Horses: A Pilot Study

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Veterinary Science

VOLUME=Volume 7 - 2020

YEAR=2020

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/veterinary-science/articles/10.3389/fvets.2020.573309

DOI=10.3389/fvets.2020.573309

ISSN=2297-1769

ABSTRACT=The aim of this randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel group clinical field study was to evaluate the effect of Detomidine oromucosal gel in alleviating anxiety and fear in horses. 
Sixteen horses with a history of acute anxiety and fear associated with firework-related noise entered the study. On New Year’s Eve, 8 horses were treated with 30 µg/kg Detomidine gel and 8 horses with placebo gel.
When fireworks were present, 75% (6/8) of the Detomidine-treated horses were scored by their owners as having a good or excellent treatment effect on anxiety and fear, while 50% (3/6) of horses receiving placebo were scored to have a good effect.
Horses’ behavior was video-recorded and assessed with a focal animal continuous method by a treatment-blind expert observer. Results showed that when fireworks were present walking behavior decreased significantly (p<0.05) after treatment with Detomidine and that horses of the Placebo group, overall, showed more restlessness, vocalization and signs of colic (Wilcoxon matched-pairs test on the first PC, p=0.007).
This study indicates that Detomidine oromucosal gel can be used to alleviate acute noise-related anxiety and fear in horses, but larger treatment groups are needed to confirm the results.