title: Attitudes and Beliefs of Pig Farmers and Wild Boar Hunters Towards Reporting of African Swine Fever in Bulgaria, Germany and the Western Part of the Russian Federation.
abstract: This study investigated the attitudes and beliefs of pig farmers and hunters in Germany, Bulgaria and the western part of the Russian Federation towards reporting suspected cases of African swine fever (ASF). Data were collected using a web-based questionnaire survey targeting pig farmers and hunters in these three study areas. Separate multivariable logistic regression models identified key variables associated with each of the three binary outcome variables whether or not farmers would immediately report suspected cases of ASF, whether or not hunters would submit samples from hunted wild boar for diagnostic testing and whether or not hunters would report wild boar carcasses. The results showed that farmers who would not immediately report suspected cases of ASF are more likely to believe that their reputation in the local community would be adversely affected if they were to report it, that they can control the outbreak themselves without the involvement of veterinary services and that laboratory confirmation would take too long. The modelling also indicated that hunters who did not usually submit samples of their harvested wild boar for ASF diagnosis, and hunters who did not report wild boar carcasses are more likely to justify their behaviour through a lack of awareness of the possibility of reporting. These findings emphasize the need to develop more effective communication strategies targeted at pig farmers and hunters about the disease, its epidemiology, consequences and control methods, to increase the likelihood of early reporting, especially in the Russian Federation where the virus circulates.
authors.affiliation: Veterinary Epidemiology, Economics and Public Health Group, Royal Veterinary College, London, UK.
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Vergne
authors.affiliation: Veterinary Epidemiology, Economics and Public Health Group, Royal Veterinary College, London, UK.|Pirbright Institute, Pirbright, UK.
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Guinat
authors.affiliation: Bulgarian Food Safety Agency, Sofia, Bulgaria.
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Petkova
authors.affiliation: State Research Institution National Research Institute for Veterinary Virology and Microbiology of Russia, Pokrov, the Russian Federation.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Gogin
authors.affiliation: State Research Institution National Research Institute for Veterinary Virology and Microbiology of Russia, Pokrov, the Russian Federation.
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Kolbasov
authors.affiliation: Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut, Greifswald - Insel Riems, Germany.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Blome
authors.affiliation: Centre de Coopération Internationale en Recherche Agronomique pour le Développement, Montpellier, France.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Molia
authors.affiliation: SAFOSO Inc., Bern, Switzerland.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Pinto Ferreira
authors.affiliation: Veterinary Epidemiology, Economics and Public Health Group, Royal Veterinary College, London, UK.
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Wieland
authors.affiliation: Veterinary Epidemiology, Economics and Public Health Group, Royal Veterinary College, London, UK.|Clinic for Swine, Vetsuisse Faculty, University of Berne, Berne, Switzerland.
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Nathues
authors.affiliation: Veterinary Epidemiology, Economics and Public Health Group, Royal Veterinary College, London, UK.
authors.forename: D U
authors.initials: DU
authors.lastname: Pfeiffer
mesh_terms: D000357:African Swine Fever / Q000517:prevention & control*; D000822:Animal Husbandry / Q000379:methods*; D000818:Animals; D002031:Bulgaria; D003140:Communicable Disease Control / Q000379:methods*; D004196:Disease Outbreaks / Q000517:prevention & control / Q000662:veterinary; D000067565:Farmers; D005858:Germany; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D016015:Logistic Models; D012426:Russia; D034421:Sus scrofa / Q000821:virology; D013552:Swine / Q000821:virology
keywords: African swine fever; behaviour; farmers; hunters; reporting; surveillance