Melbourne Veterinary School, Faculty of Veterinary and Agricultural Sciences, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
Vet Med Sci. 2022 Jan;8(1):130-138. doi: 10.1002/vms3.656. Epub 2021 Oct 13.
With the rapid expansion of pet animal populations worldwide, pet-related zoonotic diseases are becoming an important issue in public health. Hong Kong (HK), located in southern China, is one of the most crowded urban centres in the world. The population of pets, especially exotic pets, in HK has grown significantly in recent decades, potentially elevating the risk of pet-related zoonotic diseases. However, no studies have been conducted to explore the knowledge of HK public towards pet-related zoonotic diseases and animal husbandry practices.
To evaluate the level of awareness among the HK public of pet-related zoonotic diseases and their understanding of proper animal husbandry practices.
The study was carried out in HK from June-August 2019 using both online and paper versions of a questionnaire. A total of 362 completed questionnaires (74.3% return rate) were collected and the responses analysed.
Sixty percent of the participants were current or past pet owners or planned on becoming pet owners in the coming 2 years, irrespective of their income or size of their living space. Among the participants, pet owners (including those who planned pet ownership) had a relatively higher level of awareness of pet-related zoonotic disease. However, the overall awareness of zoonotic diseases among both pet and non-pet owners was low with a knowledge score of <50%. A similar trend was observed for knowledge about proper animal husbandry practices.
This study showed that the HK public was generally not familiar with pet-related zoonotic diseases and proper pet care. These knowledge gaps could potentially increase the risk of disease transmission. Further studies focusing on specific pet species and on people of different social-economic backgrounds are needed to provide future direction of efforts to reduce the risk of pet-related zoonotic diseases and to enhance pet-related animal and human welfare.
随着全球宠物动物数量的快速增长，与宠物相关的人畜共患疾病正成为公共卫生的一个重要问题。中国香港（HK）是世界上人口最密集的城市中心之一。近年来，香港的宠物数量，特别是外来宠物数量显著增加，这可能增加了与宠物相关的人畜共患疾病的风险。然而，目前尚未有研究探讨香港公众对与宠物相关的人畜共患疾病和动物养殖实践的了解。
评估香港公众对与宠物相关的人畜共患疾病的认知水平以及对适当的动物养殖实践的理解。
本研究于 2019 年 6 月至 8 月在香港进行，采用在线和纸质问卷两种形式。共收集到 362 份完整的问卷（回收率为 74.3%），并对这些问卷进行了分析。
60%的参与者是当前或过去的宠物主人，或者计划在未来 2 年内成为宠物主人，无论其收入或居住空间大小如何。在参与者中，宠物主人（包括那些计划养宠物的人）对与宠物相关的人畜共患疾病有相对较高的认识。然而，无论是宠物主人还是非宠物主人，对人畜共患疾病的整体认识都很低，知识得分<50%。对适当的动物养殖实践的认识也呈现出类似的趋势。
本研究表明，香港公众普遍不熟悉与宠物相关的人畜共患疾病和适当的宠物护理。这些知识差距可能会增加疾病传播的风险。需要进一步研究特定的宠物物种以及不同社会经济背景的人群，为减少与宠物相关的人畜共患疾病风险和提高与宠物相关的动物和人类福利提供未来的努力方向。
