Abstract
Rabies is a neglected zoonotic disease that causes around 59,000 deaths per year globally. In Africa, rabies virus is mostly maintained in populations of free‐roaming domestic dogs (FRDD) that are predominantly owned. Characterizing the roaming behavior of FRDD can provide relevant information to understand disease spread and inform prevention and control interventions. To estimate the home range (HR) of FRDD and identify predictors of HR size, we studied 168 dogs in seven different areas of Blantyre city, Malawi, tracking them with GPS collars for 1–4 days. The median core HR (HR50) of FRDD in Blantyre city was 0.2 ha (range: 0.08–3.95), while the median extended HR (HR95) was 2.14 ha (range: 0.52–23.19). Multivariable linear regression models were built to identify predictors of HR size. Males presented larger HR95 than females. Dogs living in houses with a higher number of adults had smaller HR95, while those living in houses with higher number of children had larger HR95. Animals that received products of animal origin in their diets had larger HR95, and only in the case of females, animals living in low‐income areas had larger HR50 and HR95. In contrast, whether male dogs were castrated or not was not found to be associated with HR size. The results of this study may help inform rabies control and prevention interventions in Blantyre city, such as designing risk‐based surveillance activities or rabies vaccination campaigns targeting certain FRDD subpopulations. Our findings can also be used in rabies awareness campaigns, particularly to illustrate the close relationship between children and their dogs.
Highlights
Dogs have been long-time companions of human beings, but in spite of all positive aspects, this coexistence facilitates sharing of multiple parasites, viruses, and bacteria between the two species
We aimed to identify the key factors associated with home range (HR) size in the study site, considering predictors of space use identified in previous studies and other potentially relevant variables
Rabies represents a leading zoonotic and public health threat in Malawi where, as in other African countries, it is maintained in populations of owned free-roaming domestic dogs (FRDD) (Conan et al, 2015)
Summary
Dogs have been long-time companions of human beings, but in spite of all positive aspects, this coexistence facilitates sharing of multiple parasites, viruses, and bacteria between the two species. The number of cases of rabies in Blantyre city and in the district has decreased since 2015, following a successful annual mass canine vaccination program carried out by the non-governmental organization Mission Rabies (Zimmer et al, 2018). Defining how far from their household dogs roam can help estimate potential number of contacts with other animals, which is important for understanding disease spread (Hudson et al, 2019). A deeper knowledge of the factors affecting roaming behavior will lead to identify high-risk individuals This information would help to refine recommendations for rabies vaccination targeting these specific dogs (Warembourg, Fournié, et al, 2021). A better understanding of dog roaming patterns can be of help to define risk factors for rabies exposure and to identify these most exposed groups toward which awareness campaigns should be addressed. The study results can be used to inform rabies surveillance and rabies control interventions
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