An assessment of the owned canine and feline demographics in Chile: registration, sterilization, and unsupervised roaming indicators.

The global rise in companion animal populations, particularly dogs and cats, is driven by emotional and social benefits for owners, and their population management is becoming critically important to avoid a plethora of adverse effects on themselves, humans, and wildlife. We estimated the size and density of the owned canine and feline population in Chile and evaluated the status of microchipping, registration, sterilization rates, and the proportion of owned animals that roam unsupervised. A cross-sectional household survey in 36 districts was conducted and standard inferential statistics was employed to analyze differences between cats and dogs, sexes within each species, and between rural and urban areas. Additionally, two negative binomial models with mixed effects were developed to predict the number of dogs and cats per households. Two methods were used to compare population size estimates at the country level, multiplying: (1) the estimated mean number of companion animals per household by the estimated number of households at the country level, and (2) the estimated human:dog and human:cat ratios by the total human population. The study involved 6333 respondents, of which 76% (74% urban; 83% rural) owned companion animals (dogs and/or cats). Individuals in rural multi-person households increase the probability of owning dogs and/or cats. Additionally, women exhibit a greater inclination towards cat and dog ownership compared to men, while those over 30 years old demonstrate lower rates of companion animal ownership in contrast to the 18-30 age group for both species. The overall human:dog and human:cat ratios estimated were 2.7:1, and 6.2:1, respectively. The estimated total number of owned dogs and cats in Chile ranged from 9.6 to 10.7 million, depending on the methodological approach, while national median density of companion animals was 12 dogs per km2 (ranging from 0.02 to 7232) and 5 cats per km2 (ranging from 0.01 to 3242). This nationwide study showed one of the highest percentages of households with companion animals in Latin America and relatively low registration and sterilization rates, highlighting the need to strength long-term public policies to control populations of companion animals and promote responsibility in pet ownership.

Piloting an International Comparison of Readily Accessible Online English Language Advice Surrounding Responsible Cat Ownership.

Cats are popular companion animals globally. While the general academic definition of responsible cat ownership is agreed upon, committing to responsible cat ownership is multifaceted, often reflecting regional priorities and values. Utilising a virtual private network (VPN), an English-language online search for 'responsible cat ownership' was applied from major cities in 10 different nations, accounting for five different geographic regions and nine different geographic sub-regions. Data were extracted from the first 20 webpages of each search and included author affiliation, country of webpage origin, and all recommendations towards responsible cat ownership. Searches identified 58 different webpages, 142 duplicate results, and 16 different recommendations. Both before (60.5%) and after (58.6%) duplicate exclusion, irrespective of region, most webpages originated from Australia, so recommendations may lack local nuance in other countries. Similarly, local government webpages were the most common author affiliation both before (35.5%) and after (37.9%) duplicate exclusion-moreover, most Australian webpages were authored by local government (55.9%). More than half of all webpages recommended registration and microchipping (65.5%), desexing (65.5%), and containment (60.3%), probably due to the predominance of local government and Australian webpages online-reflecting Australia's strong legislative stance. Both Australia and New Zealand showed majority recommendations for containment but not for environmental and behavioural enrichment in households. This may be partially explained by the significantly higher agreement in Australia and New Zealand that cats threaten valued wildlife in cities, towns, and rural areas. Unlike the Oceanian nations, other countries clearly recommended improved understanding and provision for cat needs, but with little evidence of support for containment. Thus, divergent welfare considerations inform major webpages associated with attitudes towards cat ownership internationally. Encouraging containment, a responsible cat ownership practice with benefits for cats and wildlife, may be more likely to succeed outside Oceania if cat welfare is emphasised instead of wildlife protection. Within Oceania, more attention could be given to enhancing the well-being of contained cats.

Regulatory Compliance in Online Dog Advertisements in Australia.

In Australia, each state and territory authority implements and enforces regulations regarding dog management-including the breeding and sale of dogs online-which is increasingly becoming the most popular method of obtaining pets. The aims for this study included: 1. Benchmarking regulatory compliance in online dog advertisements in Australia, and, 2. Understanding factors associated with regulatory compliance in online advertisements. We collected advertisements for dogs and puppies from Gumtree-one of Australia's most popular online trading platforms - on two separate days, two weeks apart (25 March and 8 April 2019). A total of 1735 unique advertisements were included in the dataset. Chi-squared tests and multivariable logistic regression models were used to identify risk factors for microchipping, desexing and breeder identification number, and compliance levels. State laws requiring animals to be microchipped prior to sale and the inclusion of chip numbers in advertisements were found to be the biggest factor in increasing likelihood of microchipped animals in Gumtree advertisements, while desexing was more common in microchipped and older animals. The online ad was more likely to include a breeder ID if the dog was young, vaccinated, and advertised by a breeder rather than an owner. The findings from this study will assist regulators to make evidence-based decisions on managing online advertisements for companion animals. In the future, the benchmarking this study has presented will allow future analysis of the effectiveness of regulation changes.

A survey of opinions towards dog and cat management policy issues in New Zealand.

Aims: To describe the opinions of respondents to an online survey on desexing, microchipping and pet registration, and the management of cats, and aggressive dogs in New Zealand. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted online from 18-22 June 2015 using a permission-based panel of New Zealand residents aged ≥18 years. Questions included demographics of respondents, number of dogs and cats owned, and opinions on desexing, microchipping, pet registration, management of cats and aggressive dogs. Results: Of the 1,572 survey respondents, 216 (13.7%) owned ≥1 dog and ≥1 cat, 227 (14.4%) owned ≥1 dog and no cats, 480 (30.5%) owned ≥1 cat and no dogs, and 559 (35.6%) did not own any pets. The majority of dogs (456/613; 74.8%) and cats (974/1,045; 93.2%) were desexed. The most common reasons for not desexing pets were cost, feeling that it was not needed, or keeping the dog for breeding. Of the 613 dogs, 557 (90.9%) were registered with the local council, and 434 (71.0%) were microchipped, but only 290 (47.3%) were registered in the national database. Of the 1,045 cats, 326 (31.2%) were microchipped and 279/486 (57.4%) owners felt that it was unnecessary. Of the 1,572 respondents, 947 (60.2%) were unaware of stray cats in their local community, and 479 (30.5%) stated that local councils, or animal welfare organisations (546/1,572; 34.7%) should be responsible for managing strays. Among all 1,572 respondents, 787 (50.1%) thought stray cats should be assessed and subjected to euthanasia. Compared with non-pet owners, a lower percentage of cat owners agreed that cats should be confined (p < 0.001). When asked to choose the most appropriate course of action for dogs that had bitten people or other animals, 849 (54.0%) and 820 (52.5%) respondents, respectively, agreed that the dog should be assessed by an expert who would then determine the appropriate action. Compared with non-pet owners, a lower percentage of dog owners supported registration and education of dog owners, aggressive dogs being destroyed, and giving more power to local councils (p < 0.05). Conclusions: The results highlight opportunities to improve owner compliance with desexing, microchipping and registration of dogs and cats. Opinions towards management of stray cat and aggressive dogs varied between pet owners and non-owners. Further research is needed to better understand how to engage the public in important dog and cat management policy issues.

Evaluating the recently imposed English compulsory dog microchipping policy. Evidence from an English Local Authority.

This is the first empirical study examining the effectiveness of the newly imposed English compulsory dog microchipping policy. A dataset of 2974 records was retrieved from an English local authority's website. Records were from the period 2010-2018 and were analysed based on the three periods of the policy timeline: initial period includes data recorded prior to the intent of imposing the microchipping policy (April 1, 2010 - February 2, 2013); second period includes data recorded between the announcement of the intent and the date of the policy coming into effect (February 3, 2013-April 5, 2016); and the final period includes data recorded after the policy came into effect (April 6, 2016-July 4, 2018). A preliminary binary univariable logistic regression model analyzed the initial period which revealed that microchipping was an effective means of traceability providing evidence supporting the imposition of the policy. Thereafter, a multinomial logistic regression model was employed for the complete dataset and all policy periods. It revealed that both the period after the announcement of intent to impose the policy and the period after the policy came into effect have had a significant effect on the return of stray dogs, with the latter of greater magnitude. In particular for Staffordshire bull terriers and its crosses, which is the leading breed in animal welfare organization and local authority kennels, this study identifies the need for further research. Overall, these findings are encouraging in terms of the success of the policy however, more insights are required on keeping microchip details up-to-date and on the link of deprived areas, youth and the ownership of Staffordshire bull terriers. Although the findings of this study may not be generalized to all English local authorities, its conclusions could be used as a benchmark and starting point for further investigation.

Impact of mandatory microchipping on traceability of sheltered dogs in the Czech Republic.

Records of 4,455 sheltered dogs were analyzed to compare the numbers of traceable (able to be reunited with original caregivers) and untraceable (unable to be reunited with original caregivers) dogs before (Period 1) and after (Period 2) introduction of a mandatory microchipping. Records were also used to compare the numbers of microchipped dogs, to compare dogs' reunification with caregivers, and to estimate possible financial savings. In Period 1, 51.8% of the dogs were untraceable (median length of stay = 14 days) and 48.2% were traceable (median length of stay = 1 day). Of all traceable dogs, 24.5% were microchipped, and 67.5% of microchipped dogs were traceable. In Period 2, 57.1% of dogs were traceable (median length of stay = 0 days), and 42.9% were untraceable (median length of stay = 12 days). Of all traceable dogs, 61.4% had a microchip, and 80% of microchipped dogs were traceable. In Period 2, authorities saved more than US$43,400 on unreclaimed dog care. Mandatory microchipping of dogs appears to be an effective measure to increase reunification of sheltered dogs, decrease length of stay, and save authority funds.

Experiences with Hermann's tortoise (Testudo hermanni) microchipping in Slovenia - Short communication.

This study describes experiences obtained with microchipping of Hermann's tortoises in Slovenia. Over a period of three years, a total of 5,128 Hermann's tortoises from parental breeding stock were microchipped. Microchips were implanted subcutaneously in the left inguinal region. During the application of microchips, males were bleeding in 2.6% and females in 1.4% of the cases. Bleeding frequency was related to sex, animal size and environmental temperature at the time of microchipping. The presence of microchips was followed up over a period of several years. At the control check conducted a few years later, all previously microchipped tortoises were included. Out of the entire parental breeding stock, 235 (4.6%) had lost their microchips, thus 63 males (5.7%) and 172 females (4.3%) were unmarked. The possible reasons for microchip loss are migration or inactivity of the implanted microchips.