Estimate of the owned canine and feline populations in urban area in Brazil

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: Given the importance of assessing owned dog and cat populations to adequate planning and evaluation of rabies control measures in urban areas, it is proposed the use of an estimate of these populations based on human population parameters. METHODS: The ratio between human population and owned animal (dogs and cats) population was calculated in the municipality of Taboão da Serra, state of São Paulo, Brazil. This municipality was divided into two distinct social and economic homogeneous areas through k-mean algorithm, allowing for comparison between the ratios of the two homogeneous areas. RESULTS: A 5.14 ratio was calculated for human and dog populations and a 30.57ratio for human and feline populations. A significant difference was not observed when comparing the ratios for human and animal populations of the two homogeneous areas. CONCLUSIONS: An estimate of owned dog and cat populations based on the human population is the better choice for assessing the animal population instead of an animal census because it can be easily implemented.