Abstract:
Protocols for evaluating oral rabies vaccine baits for domestic dogs were field tested in central Mexico,
after which dog-food manufacturers and suppliers to the pet-food industry were advised as to potential
ingredients for use in prototype dog baits. Bait-preference trials in which confined dogs were used were
then undertaken, followed by field tests of free-ranging farmer-owned dogs in three towns in the Nile
River Delta region of Egypt. Both confined and free-ranging dogs showed strong preferences for certain
baits or bait coatings (poultry, beef tallow, cheese, egg and a proprietary product). Fish-meal polymer
baits, widely used for wildlife species, were less preferred. In Egypt, a commercial dog-food-meal
bait coated with beef tallow and dry cheese was consumed at a rate approaching that of a chicken-head
bait.
The percentage baits that were actually eaten after they had been offered to dogs, ranged from
71-96% for household dogs tested in Mexico, 65-91% for confined dogs (beagles and mixed breeds)
tested in the United States, and 32-88% for farmer-owned dogs tested in Egypt.
