Assessing multiple free-roaming dog control strategies in a flexible agent-based model.

Management of free-roaming dog populations is required to mitigate the threat of pathogens like rabies, minimize conflict with people, wildlife, and livestock and improve dog welfare however there are multiple strategies currently employed including sterilization, vaccination, and lethal removal. This work describes an agent-based stochastic model, 'StreetDogSim' that can be used as a planning tool to investigate the predicted impact of different strategies with variable implementation approaches and adjustable parameters to match local conditions. Here, we explore the effects of different management strategies with additional variation in their duration, intensity, and vaccine quality on important population metrics such as overall size, demographics, vaccination coverage, time until effective population suppression, and duration of suppression.

Dog overpopulation and diagnosis of intestinal parasites on Santa Cruz Island, Galapagos 2016.

Dog overpopulation and diseases are hazards to native island species and humans on the Galapagos. The main objective of the study reported here was to estimate the observed human:dog ratio on Santa Cruz Island, Galapagos in September 2016. In addition, dog demographic data were used to model the expected annual dog population growth in the next 10 years.

Comparison of field surveillance methods for and assessment of factors potentially associated with the presence of free-roaming cats in a mixed-urban environment.

OBJECTIVE To evaluate 2 methods of surveying free-roaming cats (Felis catus) and identify factors potentially associated with the presence of such cats in a mixed-urban environment. ANIMALS Free-roaming cats on and near The Ohio State University campus. PROCEDURES The university campus and surrounding areas were divided into zones classified by land-use category; 100 zones were selected for surveillance of free-roaming cats by the line-transect method (with visual observation).

Disease control through fertility control: Secondary benefits of animal birth control in Indian street dogs.

We sought to (1) survey sexually intact street dogs for a wide range of diseases in three cities in Rajasthan, India and (2) evaluate links between the health of non-treated dogs and both the presence and duration of animal birth control (ABC) programs. ABC regimes sterilize and vaccinate stray dogs in an attempt to control their population and the spread of rabies. They are commonly suggested to improve the health of those dogs they serve, but here we provide evidence that these benefits also extend to untreated dogs in the community.