Infection Medicine, Deanery of Biomedical Sciences, College of Medicine and Veterinary Medicine, The University of Edinburgh, 1 George Square, EH8 9JZ Edinburgh, United Kingdom; Central Veterinary Research Institute, Ministry of Fisheries and Livestock, P.O. Box 33780, Lusaka, Zambia.
Department of Veterinary Services, Tsetse and Trypanosomiasis Control Section, Ministry of Fisheries and Livestock, Lusaka, Zambia.
Prev Vet Med. 2023 Aug;217:105969. doi: 10.1016/j.prevetmed.2023.105969. Epub 2023 Jun 27.
Good dog-keeping practices and access to veterinary care are essential for the well-being of dogs. As the main causes of morbidity and mortality in the rural canine population in Zambia are poorly understood, we followed a cohort of 162 indigenous dogs for six months in wildlife-populated and tsetse-infested villages of Mambwe district, eastern Zambia to gain deeper insights. Dogs lacked basic home and veterinary care, they were often starved and burdened with ticks, and some passed live adult worms in their stool. The frequent exposure of dogs to tsetse bites and consumption of fresh raw game meat and bones puts them at greater risk of acquiring African trypanosomiasis. Nearly 20 % of dogs were lost to follow-up, with the main causes being poor health (58.1 %), predation by wild carnivores (29 %), and owner culling or euthanasia (12.9 %). We observed that indigenous dogs' general well-being and survival were largely influenced by their environment, infectious diseases, injuries sustained during interaction with conspecifics and wildlife, and community attitudes and practices associated with dog ownership.
良好的犬只饲养管理和兽医服务的可及性，对于犬只的健康至关重要。由于赞比亚农村犬群的发病和死亡的主要原因尚未被充分了解，我们对赞比亚东部曼布韦区的野生动物栖息地和采采蝇疫区的 162 只本地犬进行了为期六个月的跟踪研究，以深入了解相关情况。这些犬只缺乏基本的家庭和兽医护理，经常挨饿，身上有很多蜱虫，有些还排出了活体成虫。犬只频繁接触采采蝇叮咬、食用生的野味肉和骨头，这使它们面临更大的感染非洲锥虫病的风险。近 20%的犬只失访，主要原因是健康状况不佳（58.1%）、被野生食肉动物捕食（29%）、以及主人的捕杀或安乐死（12.9%）。我们观察到，本地犬的整体健康和生存状况，在很大程度上受到环境、传染病、与同类和野生动物互动时受伤，以及与犬只饲养相关的社区态度和做法的影响。
