Assessment of dog rabies vaccination campaign and reported dog bites in Ogun State, Nigeria.

Rabies remains a critical public health issue in Nigeria, with dog bites being the commonest mode of transmission. This study evaluated the impact of free dog rabies vaccination campaign on vaccination coverage, and assessed the prevalence of dog bites, human and canine rabies cases in Ogun State. A cross-sectional study was conducted in 2022 using a semi-structured questionnaire to obtain information on dog keeper’s knowledge about rabies, awareness of free dog rabies vaccination campaign, and vaccination status of dogs in two senatorial districts in Ogun State. Additionally, a retrospective study was conducted to review the occurrence of dog bites and rabies infections reported to selected veterinary and human hospitals between 2010 and 2021. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and association among categorical variables was tested using chi-square with pvalue set at ≤ 0.05. Out of the 280 respondents, 85.7% were aware of rabies, with the mean knowledge score being 4.5 ± 1.9. Factors associated with knowledge level were gender and income of respondents. More than 60% of respondents were not aware of free dog rabies vaccination campaign and 78.3% of dog owners have never participated in any. Dog rabies vaccination coverage in the study area was 64.7%. Overall, one hundred and thirteen cases of dog bites with no fatality was recorded in human hospitals; males (56.6%) and adults (52.2%) were more involved in dog bites, mostly at the extremities (70.2%) with only 23.4% completing post-exposure vaccination. The study highlights significant gaps in awareness and participation in rabies vaccination campaigns.