Populational control of dogs and cats in ten Rural Villages in the State of Paraná, Brazil: mid-term results

Abstract

Due to the need for more information
regarding the duration of efforts towards pet
population control, a questionnaire was developed
to verify the mid-term impact of a surgical sterilization
project (SSP), conducted to help dog and cat
population control in ten Rural Villages (RVs) in the
Northeastern region of the State of Paraná, Brazil.
The questionnaire was applied to all participants
RV’s inhabitants, on average three years and
three months after the SSP. Additionally, in one of
the RVs, the number of residents per house was
asked, with the objective of calculating the dog:
human being and cat: human being ratios. Results
show that the efforts towards pet population control
must be evaluated in mid and long-term if all the
factors involved are to be understood. Only 21% of
the sterilized population during the SSP were still
present; thus, an important limiting factor for pet
population control is the flow of dogs and cats in
the RVs. The dog: human being and cat: human
being ratios were 1:2.7 and 1:5.2, respectively. In
order to promote longer lasting effects for future
interventions, it is essential to foster strategies to
increase life expectation of sterilized animals and
to control the arrival of new animals, with an overall
goal of decreasing pet flow in the RVs. Results
agree with the perspective that the key factor for
pet population control is the education towards
responsible pet guardianship.