Researchers from the Epidemiology of Zoonoses and Public Health Research Group at the University of Montreal will present the results of their study that modelled Arctic fox rabies dynamics. It used evidence-based modelling approaches to simulate Arctic fox rabies, providing a framework for assessing surveillance and control strategies in the Canadian Arctic.
Arctic fox rabies is the most important wildlife disease for public health in the Canadian Arctic. This lethal disease is maintained in a wild host reservoir by Arctic and red foxes. Mechanisms of transmission to humans occur primarily through contact with infected foxes, or from domestic dogs that have become infected by rabid foxes. The current climate warming is expected to alter fox habitat quality and fox distribution, movement and interaction behaviours, yet it is not known how climate warming will influence rabies dynamics and change public health risk.