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Introduction
The aetiological agent of rabies, rabies virus (RABV), is a member of the Lyssavirus genus and accounts for tens of thousands of human deaths every year (World Health Organization [WHO] 2013). The number of animal deaths, particularly in reservoir species such as the domestic dog, far exceeds this number (Hampson et al. 2015; Nel 2013; WHO 2013). Rabies on the African continent is typically maintained within the mammalian order Carnivora, and the majority of deaths in resource-limited countries are associated with RABV cycles in dogs (Canis lupus familiaris) (WHO 2013). Several other carnivores such as the black-backed jackal (Canis mesomelas) and the bat-eared fox (Otocyon megalotis) are also able to maintain cycles of rabies and subsequently contribute to the spread of the disease (Bishop et al. 2010; Sabeta et al. 2007; Swanepoel 1993; Zulu, Sabeta & Nel 2009). According to anecdotal evidence, rabies has been present in North Africa for hundreds of years, but only became epizootic in sub-Saharan countries well into the 20th century (Nel & Markotter 2007; Nel & Rupprecht 2007). During the 1950s, rabies spread eastwards from the Mpumalanga province in South Africa to Mozambique, moving eastward to the Kingdom of Swaziland (1954) and then south-eastward to the KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) province of South Africa (1961 and 1974) (Swanepoel 1993).
The first introduction of rabies into the KZN province of South Africa probably occurred in 1961 when the disease spread from the Maputo district in southern Mozambique to the northern regions of the KZN province (Mansvelt 1962; Swanepoel 1993). The high density of the rural population in the coastal and midlands regions of KZN favoured the spread of rabies and the outbreak was only brought under control in 1968 (Mansvelt 1962; Swanepoel 1993). The second introduction of rabies into KZN occurred in 1974 when the disease once again crossed the border from Mozambique into the northern regions of the province. During this outbreak, rabies spread to the Eastern Cape province (1987), Ciskei area (now part of the Eastern Cape province) (1990s) and the Kingdom of Lesotho (1982) (Swanepoel 1993). It therefore appears that rabies cycles in Mozambique and South Africa may have overlapped since the 1960s. However, because of a lack of epidemiological surveillance throughout Mozambique...