Patient pups and curious kids: preventing rabies one pup at a time

Ngarawani village in Tanzania is one of many villages near Serengeti National Park participating in a domestic dog rabies vaccination program in an effort to protect dogs, wildlife, and humans from this deadly virus. This photograph was taken during vaccination day this past June in Ngarawani where villagers (mainly children) waited in line, sometimes for several hours, for their dogs to be vaccinated for rabies. In the Serengeti, domestic dogs are a disease reservoir and can infect humans, wildlife, and other dogs with rabies. Rabies is a severe public health concern, particularly for children, because of their increased contact with dogs. Since the beginning of vaccination programs in 2003, declines in incidence of rabies have been reported throughout the region. Through my dissertation research I aim to characterize the ecology of these dogs in the context of the Serengeti ecosystem as well as determine the impact of the vaccination program on population dynamics.