Knowledge of Mongolian veterinarians towards canine vector-borne diseases

Mongolia is an expansive nation, dominated by agriculture with livestock under nomadic herder care contributing significantly to the economy. Mongolian veterinarians service these herder's livestock and dogs, and are often the first point of contact for animal health advice, including ectoparasite prophylaxis. Dogs are competent reservoir and sentinel hosts for several zoonotic vector-borne diseases (VBD). These diseases in dogs can be dependent on the presence of other sylvatic or domestic reservoir hosts, the abundance of competent vectors and supporting environmental and climatic conditions. Therefore, VBD present a true One Health challenge. The direct and close association of nomadic herders with livestock and livestock protection dogs coupled with frequent relocation (associated with nomadic lifestyles) places all three host groups (herders, livestock and livestock protection dogs) at risk of acquiring VBD. Our study set out to investigate the overall knowledge, perceptions and practices of Mongolian veterinarians towards canine vector-borne diseases (CVBD). A hardcopy questionnaire was delivered through the Mongolian Veterinary Medical Association to a cohort of veterinarians representing 39% of Mongolia's total veterinary workforce with a 53% response rate. A total of 297 participants were included in the final study. The bulk of participants were livestock veterinarians, followed by mixed animal veterinarians. Overall Mongolian veterinarians' knowledge of CVBD were scored as low (58%; 0-3 points) or medium (32%; 4-6 points) on a ten-point scale. There was a significant discrepancy between self-rated and actual knowledge. Females had 1.7 (95% CI 1.1, 2.8) times higher knowledge compared with males and those veterinarians who had 3-5 canine consultations per day were also found to have higher knowledge (odds ratio 1.4, 95% CI 0.4, 4.5). Most veterinarians utilised two or less resources to source information on CVBD over the previous 12 months. The potential of climate-induced emergence of vector populations and their associated pathogens makes it imperative that veterinarians in Mongolia have the necessary resources and knowledge to be on the forefront of CVBD preparedness and mitigation. This study identifies the knowledge gaps and addresses the need for further resources for Mongolian veterinarians to effectively engage in a One Health approach for negating CVBD in animals and humans.