Development of a Participatory Community Animal Health System under the One Health Approach through Veterinary Volunteer Mobile Services in Udon Thani Province, Thailand

Abstract

          This study examined the outcomes of a participatory community animal health system developed under the One Health approach, through veterinary volunteer mobile services that supported the Princess Mother’s Medical Volunteer Foundation in Udon Thani Province, Thailand. A community-based evaluative case-study design was employed using secondary project records, mobile service logs, household-level evaluation summaries, community participation records, and post-project sustainability indicators. The intervention was implemented over a 12-month period through repeated veterinary mobile service rounds, household-level consultation, vaccination, deworming, animal health screening, community education, referral support, and the establishment of local animal health networks. The project database covered 4 subdistricts, 8 villages, 240 target households, and 612 animals. During implementation, 14 mobile service rounds were conducted in 7 service villages, generating 762 cumulative household-service visits and 2,819 cumulative animal-service contacts or follow-up care instances. After 12 months, 214 households, representing 89.2% of the target households, had accessed animal health services at least once. Preventive animal health practices improved substantially: annual vaccination behavior increased from 30.0% to 83.8%, regular deworming from 22.5% to 77.5%, and annual animal health check-up behavior from 16.3% to 72.1%. Knowledge and practices related to zoonotic disease prevention also improved, including rabies transmission awareness from 48.7% to 95.4%, appropriate response after animal bites from 32.1% to 90.8%, and reporting abnormal animal conditions from 27.9% to 85.0%. The system generated wider social and economic outcomes. Average annual household expenditure on animal treatment decreased from 2,850 to 1,420 baht, while access to veterinary consultation increased from 22.1% to 88.3%. Community animal health leaders increased from 3 to 29 persons, and early animal illness reporting systems expanded from 1 of 8 villages to all 8 villages. Post-project sustainability indicators showed continued animal health activities, active local leaders, sustained vaccination and deworming practices, and ongoing coordination with local administrative organizations. These findings suggest that veterinary volunteer mobile services, when designed as a repeated participatory community system rather than a one-time service event, can strengthen household animal health practices, improve zoonotic disease prevention behavior, reduce access and economic burdens, and support shared community–professional One Health implementation in rural areas. The model provides practical implications for community-based veterinary public health, rural service equity, and integrated human–animal–environment health governance.