Knowledge, attitude and practice of equine vaccination among horse owners in Kano, Northern Nigeria

Abstract

Equine infectious diseases continue to be one of the most important threats to the overall health of domesticated horses and proper vaccination is one the most important preventive measure against such infectious diseases. This study assessed the knowledge, attitude and practice of equine vaccination among horse owners. Forty horse owners completed the questionnaire and all the respondents were male with an average mean age of 41.9years and 50% were degree holders. A positive attitude 14(35%) toward equine vaccination was recorded. 10% had training on horse management and 19(47.5%) were aware of equine vaccination. Statistically significant associations were observed between practice of vaccination and awareness of equine vaccination and having vaccination programme. However no statistical association was observed between practice of vaccination and attending training on horse management. The common vaccinable diseases encountered as reported were tetanus (28/40), influenza (17/40), and AHS (6/40) with 37.5% and 2.5% of the respondents agreed that tetanus and AHS respectively are the most common cause of horse death. The diseases commonly vaccinated against were tetanus (22.5%) and influenza (5%). The use of veterinary practice is very low as 54.6% of the respondents do either vaccinate their horses by themselves or used their groom. Their knowledge of equine vaccination is generally poor, particularly with tetanus vaccination, as majority cannot differentiate the usage of tetanus antitoxin and toxoid. In conclusion, we believe that the poor knowledge showed by the horse owners reflects inadequate information about the important of equine vaccination. It is therefore important for horse owners to understand good vaccination programme is a critical aspect of good managerial practices. More so there is need to work with their local veterinarians in developing vaccination programmes for the common diseases seen in the area.

Keywords: attitude, horse, knowledge, practice, vaccination