Factors Associated with Inappropriate Use of Antibiotics Among Animal Health Professionals in Selected Districts of Rwanda, 2021.

BACKGROUND: Antibiotic resistance is a global health concern. Humans can acquire antibiotic resistance through human-to-human transmission, from the environment, via the food chain, and through the contact with animals. The National Action Plan on antimicrobial resistance 2020-2024 highlights the prudent use of antibiotics in veterinary activities as the key element in keeping antibiotics effective. We determined the factors associated with misuse of antibiotics among animal health professionals in Rwanda. METHODS: This was a cross-sectional study that enrolled animal health field professionals from five districts, where stratified random sampling was used to select one district by each province of Rwanda. Structured questions were used during face-to-face interviews. The misuse of antibiotics was defined as the use of antibiotics for reasons other than treatment, the non-completion of required courses, or the use of a high dose (i.e., an overdose) of antibiotics. We collected socio-demographic data of respondents, as well as elementary knowledge and perceptions on veterinary antibiotics and antibiotic resistance. A backward stepwise logistic regression model was used to identify the factors that were predictive of the inappropriate use of antibiotics. RESULTS: There were 256 respondents to the survey. Of those, 198 were male and 58 were female. Almost three quarters of respondents (n = 174/256; 68%) reported the misuse of antibiotics at least once in the previous 12 months. The final logistic regression analysis identified the following factors to be predictive of antibiotics misuse: aged ≤ 24 years (aOR 0.92; 95% CI [0.88, 0.96]; p < 0.001); low trust in veterinary antibiotics available in the local market (aOR 8.45; 95% CI [4.18, 17.07]; p < 0.01), insufficient knowledge about basic understanding of antibiotics and antibiotic resistance (aOR 2.78; 95% CI [1.38, 5.58], p < 0.01) and not acquiring any continuing education (aOR 1.97; 95% CI [1.02, 4.19]; p = 0.04). CONCLUSIONS: This study identified inadequate perceptions of proper antibiotic use among animal health professionals. There is a need for continuous education on appropriate antibiotic use among animal health professionals to lessen the negative impact of antibiotic resistance on public health security.

Milk production performance of Ankole crossbreds and Holstein Friesian cattle in different production environments of Rwanda.

The aim of the study was to assess the productive performance of dairy cattle in three different agro-ecological zones of Rwanda: Congo-Nile/Western (WAZ), Central plateau/Central (CAZ), and Eastern plateau/East Agro-ecological Zones (EAZ). A single-visit multi-subject survey was conducted to obtain information on the dairy cattle performance from 51 farms. The breed groups were classified as Ankole x Holstein Friesian (AF), other Ankole crossbreds (AX), and pure Holstein Friesian (F). The F had higher (p < 0.001) milk yield than AF in all zones except EAZ and AF had higher (p < 0.0001) milk yield than AX in all zones. Across all zones, F produced 9 L more than AX and 6 L more than AF per day. Cows from EAZ had the highest average milk yield; however, it was not significantly different from CAZ. The difference that was observed between AF in EAZ and AF in the other two zones indicates that agro-ecological zones should not only be the target in livestock development activities rather additional factors such as feed availability at farm level, social economic, and market infrastructure should be considered in Rwanda.

Milk production and lactation length in Ankole cattle and Ankole crossbreds in Rwanda.

This study assessed daily milk yield (DMY), 100-day (MY100), and 305-day (MY305) milk yield, and lactation length (LL) in purebred Ankole cattle and Ankole crossbreds, and the influence of environmental factors on these traits. Milk yield data were obtained for 865 cows and 1234 lactations and analyzed using a mixed linear model. The overall least squares mean of DMY, MY100, and MY305 across breed groups was 2.7 L (N = 1234, SD = 1.7), 262 L (N = 959, SD = 176), and 759 L (N = 448, SD = 439), respectively, while the average lactation length was 256 days (N = 960, SD = 122). All factors included (breed group, season and year of calving, and parity) were significant for yield traits, except season of calving for MY305. First-parity cows had the lowest milk production, and fourth-parity cows the highest. For all traits, pure Ankole cows had the lowest milk yield. Among the crossbreds, there was no significant difference between Ankole × Friesian, Ankole-Jersey mother × Sahiwal sire, and Ankole-Sahiwal mother × Jersey sire, or between Ankole × Sahiwal and Ankole-Sahiwal mother × Sahiwal sire. It was concluded that Ankole crosses with Friesian or Jersey can be beneficial, even under a management system of limited nutrition as in Rwanda.

Reproductive performance of Ankole cattle and its crossbreds in Rwanda.

The aim of this study was to assess the reproductive performance of Ankole cattle and its crossbreds with Friesian (F), Jersey (J), and Sahiwal (S). The traits (number of records) studied were calving to first insemination, CFI (797); calving to last insemination, CLI (797); conception rate, CR (4354); number of inseminations, NINS (936); and calving interval, CI (259). The overall means of intervals CFI, CLI and CI, CR, and NINS were 192, 198 and 480 days, 67%, and 1.23 respectively. Breed group was significant (P < 0.05) for all traits except NINS, while season of calving was significant for CFI, CLI, and CI, and season of insemination was significant for CR. The breed group AF had better CR than the purebred Ankole and AS, and AS had lower CR than AJxS and AJ. On the other hand, Ankole (and to some extent AF) had longer CFI and CLI than AJ, AS, and FF. Ankole had 54 days longer CI than all crossbreds taken together. The prolonged intervals CFI, CLI, and CI observed in this study call for proper postpartum anestrus management both in terms of nutrition and calf suckling management.

Growth traits of crossbreds of Ankole with Brown Swiss, Holstein Friesian, Jersey, and Sahiwal cattle in Rwanda.

The objective of the study was to compare body weights and growth from birth to 18 months of age of various groups of crossbred cattle born from 1999 to 2007, being crossbreds of Ankole (A) with Brown Swiss (B), Holstein Friesian (F), Jersey (J), and Sahiwal (S). Average weights were 26.5 kg at birth, 161 kg at weaning, and 226 kg at 18 months. Both season and sex significantly affected birth weight (BW), weight at 8 and 18 months (W8 and W18), and average daily gain from weaning to 18 months (ADG18) and, unlike season, sex significantly affected average daily gain to 8 months and weaning age. The general trend was that average daily gain attained a maximum before weaning and thereafter decreased until 18 months. Least square means for AB and AF calves were comparable and significantly differed only for W18 and ADG18. AJ had the lowest BW but was comparable with AS, AJxS, and ASxJ for W8, age-adjusted weaning weight, and W18. Generally, AF was heavier than other breed groups, but the difference was smaller than expected probably because environmental conditions did not allow full expression of genetic potential for growth.