Lassa fever cases have increased in Nigeria since 2016 with the highest number, 633 cases, reported in 2018. From 1 January to 28 April 2019, 554 laboratory-confirmed cases including 124 deaths were reported in 21 states in Nigeria. A public health emergency was declared on 22 January by the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control. We describe the various outbreak responses that have been implemented, including establishment of emergency thresholds and guidelines for case management.

IntroductionEstimation of dog population is relevant in Animal Health Planning; some of the benefits include rabies control and possible elimination, estimation of quantity of dog vaccines and drugs required in the state, policy development and implementation.MethodsA cross-sectional study was conducted to estimate the population of dogs in Nasarawa state; a local government area (LGA) was randomly selected from each of the three senatorial districts and two wards were selected randomly from the selected LGA's. Three hundred and thirteen questionnaires were administered through face to face interview with dog owners and their dogs in view.ResultsAnalysis indicated 97.7% of the dogs were local breeds, 1.7% mixed and 0.3% exotic breeds. Guard dogs were 77% and 23% were used for hunting. Majority of the dogs (67.5%) were owned/stray while 32.5% were owned/confined. In Nasarawa state, 21% of the dogs were vaccinated and 79% had no vaccination history. The low vaccination rate indicates possible threat to animal and human health; hunting dogs are possible source of rabies introduction into their immediate communities from contact with wild reservoirs of the virus. Majority of dogs were between 1-5 years (73%) and more female dogs (52.5%) than males (47.5%) were reported. The dog to household ratio was 1.1:1 while the dog to human ratio is 1.1:6. Estimated number of dogs in Nasarawa state was 462,586 dogs.ConclusionProper sensitization of dog owners on annual antirabies vaccination against rabies in dogs and postexposure prophylaxis in humans is recommended. The local authorities should institute effective measures for the control of stray dogs to prevent the risk of dog bites and other environmental hazards posed by such dogs. The state government should enact and enforce laws on responsible dog ownership to include compulsory annual vaccination of all dogs. This exercise should be replicated in other states of the federation for a comprehensive national dog ecological data necessary for planning, policy development and implementation.

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