The Indonesian island province of Bali experienced its first rabies incursion in 2008. Mass vaccination of the dog population has proven effective and rabies cases in dogs and people have decreased, however the virus is still circulating among the dog population. Vaccination coverage must be maintained until rabies elimination.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFWhen sighting-based surveys to estimate population densities of large herbivores in tropical dense forests are not practical or affordable, surveys that rely on animal dung are sometimes used. This study tested one such dung-based method by deriving population densities from observed dung densities of six large herbivores (chital, elephant, gaur, muntjac, sambar, and wild pig) in two habitats, dry deciduous forests (DDF) and moist deciduous forests (MDF), within Nagarahole National Park, southern India. Using the program DUNGSURV, dung pile counts, decay rates estimated from field experiments, and defecation rates derived from literature were analyzed together by a model that allows for random events affecting dung decay.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThis study gained an understanding of dog demographics, owner behaviour, and knowledge, attitudes and practices relating to rabies in three villages in Sanur, Bali, providing insights for an intervention to improve responsible dog ownership. A combination of a census of all dogs, street surveys of roaming dogs, and a Knowledge, Attitude and Practices (KAP) survey was used to study both dogs and people. A total of 6009 dogs were recorded, of which only 3.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFDog population management is conducted in many countries to address the public health risks from roaming dogs and threats to their welfare. To assess its effectiveness, we need to monitor indicators from both the human and dog populations that are quick and easy to collect, precise and meaningful to intervention managers, donors and local citizens. We propose that the most appropriate indicators from the roaming dog population are population density and composition, based on counting dogs along standard routes using a standard survey protocol.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Dogs are ubiquitous in human society and attempts to manage their populations are common to most countries. Managing dog populations is achieved through a range of interventions to suit the dog population dynamics and dog ownership characteristics of the location, with a number of potential impacts or goals in mind. Impact assessment provides the opportunity for interventions to identify areas of inefficiencies for improvement and build evidence of positive change.
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