An estimated 200 to 400 million street dogs roam throughout unforgiving environments around the world.
Facing a harsh reality of malnutrition, disease, and early death, the fate of street dogs does not need to be a forgone conclusion. Spay FIRST! supports global programs and groundbreaking fertility control research that can change the future outlook for these animals. Highly populated international regions present unique challenges. Street dogs can carry many zoonotic diseases, some of which can transfer to humans in their communities. Over 95% of human rabies deaths today occur in Africa and Asia as the result of being bitten by a rabid dog (5).
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The seasonality of births of litters is tied to the incidence of dog bites. Monthly human animal-bite injury records from January 2003 to June 2011 were obtained from the main government hospital in Jaipur, India. Analysis and comparison of bites showed a seasonal pattern which followed the peak of street dog breeding by approximately 10 weeks. It is concluded that a street dog sterilization program can reduce human dog-bite injuries by reducing the maternal protective behavior of the street dogs, as well as reducing the total size of the roaming dog population.
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Arm yourself with the facts.
Spay FIRST! in Action
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Many regions around the world struggle with street dog populations. Spay FIRST! has supported many international spay and neuter clinics through education and providing practical supplies. Some of the work we have been fortunate enough to be involved with is supporting local efforts to curb overpopulation in both Pakistan and Mexico.
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The truly exciting prospect is that we are very close to being able to offer these and other communities life changing non surgical fertility control for their free roaming populations. Through utilizing existing resources, infrastructure, and personnel that are currently being dispatched for rabies vaccinations, there is already a built in delivery model for our fertility control injections that are in development.
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Read more about our groundbreaking research.
SOURCES:
1 Matter, H. C., & Daniels, T. J. (2000). Dog ecology and population biology. Dogs, zoonoses and public health, 17-62.
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2 Jackman, J., & Rowan, A. N. (2007). Free-roaming dogs in developing countries: The benefits of capture, neuter, and return programs.
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3 Oregon Veterinary Medical Association. (2011). Zoonotic Disease and Dogs. https://oregonvma.org/care-health/zoonotic-diseases-dogs
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4 World Health Organization. (2013). Animal Bites. Available at: http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs373/en/
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5 Global Alliance for Rabies Control. (2013). World Rabies Day: Rabies elimination could save the world $124 billion annually. Available at: http://rabiesalliance.org/media/press/world-rabies-day-rabies-elimination-could-save-the-world-124-billion-annual#sthash.nDGfGibo.dpuf
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6 Clifton, M. (2011). How not to fight a rabies epidemic: a history in Bali. Asian Biomed, 4(4),663. Available at: http://abm.digitaljournals.org/index.php/abm/article/viewFile/565/419
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7 Rupar, Terri. (2014). Sochi’s dogs are being ‘taken into custody’ — but then what?, The Washington Post. Available at: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2014/02/05/sochis-dogs-are-being-taken-into-custody-but-then-what/
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8 International Companion Animal Management Coalition. (2012). Humane Dog Population Management Guidance. Available at: http://www.icam-coalition.org/downloads/Humane_Dog_Population_Management_Guidance_English.pdf
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9. World Society for the Protection of Animals. (2013). For a rabies-free future: The urgent economic case for mass dog vaccination. WSPA International, Available at: http://www.animalmosaic.org/Images/Rabies_free_future_economics_2013_tcm46-33220.pdf