Professor Day talks to a practitioner during one of the VGG visits to veterinary practices in New Delhi.

WSAVA release survey findings and publish guidance for Asian practitioners

A final report on vaccination practices and infectious disease prevalence in Asia has been published following a three-year study by the World Small Animal Veterinary Association (WSAVA) Vaccination Guidelines Group (VGG).

The report offers advice to the veterinary profession in Asia in areas such as undergraduate veterinary education, practitioner continuing education,  infectious disease surveillance and research and vaccine licensing.

The report also sums up findings from a VGG survey of nearly 700 practitioners in selected Asian countries - who provided information on vaccination practices at their hospitals, as well as their experiences dealing with infectious diseases.

VGG Chairman, Professor Michael Day, comments: "This report is the culmination of three years work and fact-finding visits by the VGG to Japan, India, China and Thailand.   We give advice on optimum vaccination practice in the Asian context; highlight key aspects of vaccine storage and delivery and respond to 80 questions posed frequently during the seven CE events we delivered to more than 800 practitioners during the project.

"We also highlight the issue of canine rabies in many Asian countries and urge the profession in countries endemic for the disease to engage with the target set by the WSAVA One Health Committee and the International Organisation for Animal Health, for global elimination of canine rabies by 2030."

The VGG report, Recommendations on Vaccination for Asian Small Animal Practitioners: a Report of the WSAVA Vaccination Guidelines Group, is available for public access on the WSAVA website