TRAPP - UK Badger vaccination

TRAPP is a platform that supports the coordination humane badger trapping for vaccination to control TB. The system has been developed by Worldwide Veterinary Service to support the efforts of the UK government to control TB in badgers through vaccination.

The process of trapping badgers for vaccination requires multiple visits to each trapping location over several days. From the initial distribution of bait to the placement of one or more inactive traps that allow badgers to become familiar, followed by the setting of these traps to capture and finally the inspection of traps that were left active the day before. There are many benefits to managing this process through a phone app, both from the perspectives of field personnel, and programme managers and administrators. Remote traps may be managed by more than one person and so the real-time sharing of GPS trap locations between users ensures that traps can be easily found. Being able to see the distribution of all traps in the field enables teams to identify areas not covered and avoid wasting resource through over-trapping areas. For campaign managers the information entered by field users provides a wellspring of data from which to assess operational efficiency, spatial distribution of resource, and to infer efficacy in controlling TB. Importantly the data can be used to refine vaccination methodology and strategize the geographic deployment of resources for maximum impact on TB transmission.