Rabies has killed thousands of kudus in Namibia since the 1970s, but years of research into methods to combat the often-devastating outbreaks have now yielded positive results. In the most recent study undertaken by the University of Namibia (UNAM), measurable antibodies were for the first time identified in a ruminant that received oral vaccination against rabies. The aim of the study was to compare the different doses and methods of administration of the oral rabies vaccine in an attempt to elicit a measurable immune response in kudus. Dr Rainer Hassel, study leader and lecturer at the School of Veterinary Medicine located at UNAM's Neudamm campus near Windhoek, said in a statement that as part of the latest research the effectiveness of using "bait" containing the vaccine was also further investigated. He said it was necessary to determine the extent to which kudus in natural veld conditions would consume the bait in order to ingest sufficient amounts of the oral vaccine.