Age structure of owned dogs under compulsory culling in a visceral leishmaniasis endemic area.
The age structure of the dog population is essential for planning and evaluating control programs for zoonotic diseases. We analyzed data of an owned-dog census in order to characterize, for the first time, the structure of a dog population under compulsory culling in a visceral leishmaniasis endemic area (Panorama, São Paulo State, Brazil) that recorded a dog-culling rate of 28% in the year of the study. Data on 1,329 households and 1,671 owned dogs revealed an owned dog:human ratio of 1:7. The mean age of dogs was estimated at 1.73 years; the age pyramid indicated high birth and mortality rates at the first year of age with an estimated cumulative mortality of 78% at the third year of age and expected life span of 2.75 years. In spite of the high mortality, a growth projection simulation suggested that the population has potential to grow in a logarithmic scale over the years. The estimated parameters can be further applied in models to maximize the impact and minimize financial inputs of visceral leishmaniasis control measures.
Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária, Universidade Estadual Paulista, Araçatuba, Brasil.
Danielly Vieira
DV
Bortoletto
Faculdade de Ciência Agrária e Veterinárias, Universidade Estadual Paulista, Jaboticabal, Brasil.
Yuri Tani
YT
Utsunomiya
Faculdade de Ciência Agrária e Veterinárias, Universidade Estadual Paulista, Jaboticabal, Brasil.
Silvia Helena Venturoli
SH
Perri
Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária e Zootecnia, Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, Brasil.
Fernando
F
Ferreira
Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária, Universidade Estadual Paulista, Araçatuba, Brasil.
Cáris Maroni
CM
Nunes
D017677:Age Distribution; D065136:Animal Culling / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D000818:Animals; D001938:Brazil / Q000453:epidemiology; D019352:Censuses; D004283:Dog Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000401:mortality; D004285:Dogs; D007898:Leishmaniasis, Visceral / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000401:mortality / Q000662:veterinary*; D010067:Ownership / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D000069457:Population Forecast / Q000379:methods; D015996:Survival Rate