CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND

Animals provide many benefits to humans. Many people interact with animals in their daily lives both home and away, from home, they provide food livelihood, travel, sports, companionship and education for people across the globe. However, animals can carry harmful germs that can spread from animal to person and from person to person and cause illness.

Zoonosis are diseases that are transmitted from non-human (animals) to people or from people to animals. These diseases may not sicken the animal but has effects on humans. Zoonotic pathogens may be viral, bacterial or parasitic or may evolve unconventionally agents and can spread to humans through direct contact, food, water or environment. They represent a major health problem around the world due to our close relationship with animals in agriculture as companionship and in the neutral environment. Zoonosis can cause disruption in the production and trade of animal products for food and other use. World health organization (WHO, 2020).

Zoonosis comprises a large percentage of all newly identified infectious disease as well as many existing ones, some diseases such as HIV began as a zoonosis but later mutated into human strains only (WHO, 2020).

Other zoonosis can cause recurring disease outbreak such as Ebola outbreak and Salmonellosis and the novel Corona virus that causes COVID -19 have the potential to cause global pandemics (WHO, 2020).

According to the center for disease prevention and control (CDC,2019), globally, infectious diseases account for about 15.8% of deaths and 43.7% deaths in low resource countries (institute for health metrics and evaluation of global burden of disease study, GBD2015 mortality and causes of death, global region and national life expectancy).

Zoonosis are very common in the US and around the world. Scientist have estimated that 6 out of every 10 know infectious in people are from animals and 3 out of four new emerging infectious diseases come from animals. Because of this, CDC works 24/7 to protect people from zoonosis in and around the world (CDC, 2021). According to Gerbreys WA, Saifymetal et al 2014, zoonosis are responsible for 2.5 billion cases of human deaths worldwide each year. As one comparism, the 2014 Ebola epidemic was responsible for 11.316 deaths and 2.2 billion in economic loss (CDC< 2016). Each year, rabies accounts for 59thousand human deaths roughly 8.6 billion in economic loss worldwide (Hampton k, sampm, 2015).

The emergence of zoonotic diseases has been accompanied by research to understand when, how and where they emerge, their pathogenesis and progression, diagnosis, treatment and strategies for prevention and control (woudloseam ME, DT, Anita R, 2013)

In East Africa, 2/3 of human infectious disease and majority of emerging infectious diseases exerting heavy public and economic burden to global community originate from animals. Based on their impact and epidemiological characteristics these zoonotic diseases have been characterized into more common endemic zoonosis such as salmonellosis, brucellosis, and leptospirosis which are responsible for more than 2.2 million human deaths and 2.4 billion cases of illness annually. The less common epidemic and emerging zoonosis such as anthrax, rift valley fever, Ebola, Zika virus which either occurs in sporadic outbreaks in neglected population or that are new or re-appearing with increased incidence or geographical range (Grace D mutual F, 2011)

In Nigeria, about 75% of new diseases that have affected the population over the past 10 years have been caused by pathogens originating from animals or products of animal origin. These diseases are termed neglected as they are mainly affect poor population who live in close proximity to domestic animals and wild animals often in areas where health and adequate sanitary conditions ore scarce (Nusirat Elue Julius, Olaniyi, Aiyedun and Saka Nuru).

In Cameroon, a study was conducted and a 2 days workshop which was aimed at identifying zoonotic diseases of greatest national concern using inputs from representatives of health, livestock, environment, wildlife research and higher educational sectors. Cameroon is particularly vulnerable to the effect of zoonosis because 70 percent of the population is engaged in small scale agriculture which contributes approximately 20 percent of the national GDP.

 1.2   Statement Of Problem

Zoonotic diseases are widely spread throughout the world and affects both affluent and non-affluent communities and individuals. The onset of these diseases are indicative of the change in the trend between man and animals. Also the close proximity between humans and pets plays an important role in the occurrence and transmission of this diseases. A typical example of such diseases of zoonotic nature is Malaria. Malaria is manifested by the onset of fever, chills, headaches, joint pains and nausea and vomiting in the simple case. The severe cases are manifested by the occurrence of convulsions, dehydration, anemia, cerebral involvement and hepatosplenomegaly. Treatment of malaria as well of other zoonotic diseases involves administering an anti-agent to the causing organism e.g. anti-malarial for malaria, anti-rabies for rabies e.t.c. Also the prevention of zoonosis involves the sleeping under treated mosquito bed nets, the proper treatment of meat, consumption of save and portable water, the vaccination of all domestic animals close to humans and also the getting yourself vaccinated against some of these zoonosis. Despite all these measures, the incidence of zoonosis is still on a steady rise. With all this preventive measures, the investigator on a visit to Tombel in the southwest region of Cameroon saw how a veterinary nurse ordered for the burial of a dead pig then later in the night the owner of the pig and some members of the community went and resumed the dead pig, roasted it and put for sale, and even the people who were aware of this still consumed the pig. Again in the southwest region, people in some villages some people rear animals without vaccinating them, live in the same house with animals such as cats, dogs, fowls, and even sleep on the same beds with them. This factors kept the investigator in dismay and began to ask why they should burry animals when they die? This prompted the investigator to carry out this project titled “Knowledge of zoonotic disease, control and prevention in the Toweh community Limbe Cameroon”.

1.3 Research objective

1.3.1 General objectives

To assess the inhabitants of Toweh on their knowledge on zoonosis control and prevention

1.3.2 Specific objectives

• To assess respondents knowledge on zoonosis
• To assess their knowledge on prevention and control of zoonosis
• To know why they consume dead animals without knowing the cause of dead
• To know why they rear animals.

1.4 Research Questions

• What do they know about zoonosis?
• Do they know that dead animals are to be buried?
• Are they aware of vaccinating animals?
• Why do they rear animals freely in the compound?