Rabies Sero-Survey In Vaccinated Domestic Dogs And Knowledge Assessment Of Rabies Among Dog Owners, Ohangwena Region, Namibia

ABSTRACT

Rabies kills over 55,000 people worldwide annually of which about 97% die resulting from the bite(s) of rabid dogs. Despite the free annual vaccination of dogs in Namibia and Ohangwena region in particular, rabies is still on the increase in both animals and humans. We conducted this study to establish the level of protection against rabies in the vaccinated domestic dogs through antibody testing. Furthermore, the study assessed the level of people’s knowledge on rabies. A descriptive cross-sectional study design was used. A random sample of 170 sera was collected from the dogs after one year from the previous vaccination. We tested sera at the Central Veterinary Laboratory using the BioPro Rabies ELISA test kit and defined rabies protective antibody titre as titres ≥0.5IU/mL. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire and analysed using Epi info 7 and Microsoft excel. Among the 170 dogs, 136 (80%) acquired protective antibody titres (95% CI: 73.2%- 85.7%). The majority of samples came from dogs younger than 3 years 90(53%). However, dogs older than 3 years maintained rabies protective antibodies better than the younger dogs (87% versus 74%), Chi2= 4.2, df=1, P=0.04. About 88% of dogs that received repeated vaccinations (boosters) over the years maintained protective antibodies compared to only 74% of dogs that received a single vaccination a year ago without a booster (P= 0.03).