Department of Tropical Hygiene, Faculty of Tropical Medicine, Mahidol University, Bangkok, Thailand.
Department of Clinical Sciences and Public Health, and the Monitoring and Surveillance, Center for Zoonotic Diseases in Wildlife and Exotic Animals, Faculty of Veterinary Science, Mahidol University, Nakhon Pathom, Thailand.
Sci Rep. 2024 Sep 3;14(1):20477. doi: 10.1038/s41598-024-71207-7.
Rabies is a neglected disease primarily related to dog-mediated transmission to humans. Accurate dog demographic and dynamic data are essential for effectively planning and evaluating population management strategies when designing interventions to prevent rabies. However, in Thailand, longitudinal survey data regarding dog population size are scarce. A school-based participatory research (SBPR) approach was conducted to survey owned dogs for one year in four high-risk provinces (Chiang Rai, Surin, Chonburi, and Songkhla) of Thailand, aiming to understand dog population dynamics and raise awareness about rabies. 'Pupify' mobile application was developed to collect data on dog population and observe the long-term population dynamics in this study. At the end of the data collection period, telephone interviews were conducted to gain insight into contextual perceptions and awareness regarding both animal and human rabies, as well as the social responsibility of dog owners in disease prevention and control. Among 303 high school students who registered in our study, 218 students reported at least one update of their dog information throughout the one-year period. Of 322 owned dogs from our survey, the updates of dog status over one year showed approximately 7.5 newborns per 100-dog-year, while deaths and missing dogs were 6.2 and 2.7 per 100-dog-year, respectively. The male to female ratio was approximately 1.8:1. Twenty-three students (10%) voluntarily participated and were interviewed in the qualitative study. The levels of rabies awareness and precautions among high-school students were relatively low. The high dropout rate of the survey was due to discontinuity in communication between the researcher and the students over the year. In conclusion, this study focused on using the SBPR approach via mobile application to collect data informing dog population dynamics and raising awareness regarding rabies in Thailand Other engaging platforms (e.g. Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and other popular applications) is necessary to enhance communication and engagement, thereby sustaining and maintaining data collection. Further health education on rabies vaccination and animal-care practices via social media platforms would be highly beneficial. For sustainable disease control, engaging communities to raise awareness of rabies and increase dog owners' understanding of their responsibilities should be encouraged.
狂犬病是一种被忽视的疾病，主要与犬介导的人类传播有关。准确的犬只人口统计和动态数据对于有效规划和评估人口管理策略至关重要，这些策略是在设计预防狂犬病的干预措施时制定的。然而，在泰国，关于犬只数量的纵向调查数据稀缺。本研究采用基于学校的参与式研究 (SBPR) 方法，在泰国四个高风险省份（清莱、素林、春武里和宋卡）对犬只进行了为期一年的调查，旨在了解犬只种群动态并提高对狂犬病的认识。本研究开发了“Pupify”移动应用程序来收集犬只数量数据，并观察长期种群动态。在数据收集结束时，进行了电话访谈，以深入了解动物和人类狂犬病以及犬主在疾病预防和控制方面的社会责任的背景认知和意识。在注册参与我们研究的 303 名高中生中，有 218 名学生在整个一年期间至少更新了一次他们的犬只信息。在我们的调查中，322 只拥有的犬只中，一年中犬只状态的更新显示每 100 只犬年约有 7.5 只新生犬，而死亡和失踪犬分别为每 100 只犬年 6.2 只和 2.7 只。雄性与雌性的比例约为 1.8:1。23 名学生（10%）自愿参与并接受了定性研究的访谈。高中生对狂犬病的认识和预防措施水平相对较低。调查的高辍学率是由于研究人员和学生在一年中的沟通不连续造成的。总之，本研究侧重于使用基于移动应用程序的 SBPR 方法收集有关犬只种群动态和提高泰国狂犬病认识的数据。需要其他参与平台（如 Facebook、Instagram、Twitter 和其他流行应用程序）来增强沟通和参与度，从而维持和保持数据收集。通过社交媒体平台进行更多关于狂犬病疫苗接种和动物护理实践的健康教育将非常有益。为了实现可持续的疾病控制，应鼓励社区提高对狂犬病的认识，并增强犬主对其责任的理解。
