Rev. sci. tech. Off. int. Epiz., 2014, 33 (1), 311-321 Control of canine rabies in developing countries: key features and animal welfare implications N. Aréchiga Ceballos (1) , D. Karunaratna (2) & A. Aguilar Setién (3)* (1) Laboratorio de Rabia, Instituto de Diagnóstico y Referencia Epidemiológicos, Secretaría de Salud, Francisco P. Miranda #177 Bis, Colonia Unidad Lomas de Plateros, C.P. 01480 México (DF), Mexico (2) World Society for the Protection of Animals, 89 Albert Embankment, London SE1 7TP, United Kingdom (3) Unidad de Investigación Médica en Inmunología, Hospital de Pediatría, 3er Piso, CMN Siglo XXI, Av. Cuauhtémoc 330, Col. Doctores, 06720 México (DF), Mexico *Corresponding author: varoaguila@prodigy.net.mx Summary Over 90% of human deaths from rabies worldwide are caused by dog bites. Mass vaccination, along with the effective control of dog populations, has been used successfully in industrialised countries to control this disease. A lower success rate in developing countries is due to a number of factors, including vaccination campaigns that do not cover a sufficient number of animals or reach all communities, and a wide biodiversity that increases the number of reservoirs of the rabies virus. Educational programmes are needed, which focus on the commitment involved when acquiring a domestic animal, stating clearly what is required to provide it with a good quality of life. New technologies developed in the industrialised world will not always be successful in less developed countries. Approaches must be adapted to the particular conditions in each country, taking cultural and socio-economic issues into account. Authorities must promote research on dog population dynamics, the development of non-invasive methods to control dog populations and the most efficient, stable and low-cost options for vaccination. Under the One Health model, it is hoped that dog-transmitted human rabies will be accorded high priority as a zoonosis by human health authorities, international authorities and donor agencies to support ambitious eradication goals, particularly those being set in South-East Asia. Well-designed and adequately resourced vaccination programmes, based on the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) guidelines, will have significant animal welfare benefits, due to the availability of improved vaccines (in terms of efficacy, duration of immunity, ease of administration and lower cost), advances in dog population management and the more widespread implementation of the OIE Guidelines on Stray Dog Control. Animal welfare benefits include not only the elimination of pain and suffering caused by the clinical disease itself, but also the avoidance of the indirect impact of inhumane culling when methods are used that have not been approved by the OIE. Keywords Animal welfare – Canine – Canine rabies – Developing country – Dogs – Rabies – Vaccination. Introduction Rabies is one of the oldest recognised diseases and it is present on all five continents. However, its presentation has evolved epidemiologically in different ways across the world. For a long time, this disease was classified into two main epidemiological cycles: urban rabies (meaning that dogs are responsible for the transmission and maintenance of the disease to humans), and wildlife rabies (in which the disease is maintained and transmitted by wild mammals). Mass vaccination, along with effective control of dog populations, has successfully been used in industrialised countries (1) to control urban rabies, showing that the disease can be eliminated by vaccinating the reservoir