Abstract
This study analysed the demographics, spatial distribution, ownership and naming patterns of dogs and cats presented to the University of Namibia’s veterinary mobile clinic for sterilisation from small underserved towns around Namibia. The proportional distribution of pets was determined based on species, sex, age, owner gender, town of origin and naming categories. Overall, 84.4% (n = 2909) of the animals presented for sterilisation were dogs and the remainder were cats (15.6%, n = 539). Of the dogs presented for sterilisation, 51.9% (n = 1509) were male and 48.1% (n = 1400) were female. In cats, 51.4% (n = 277) were male, whilst 48.6% (n = 262) were female. Overall, the majority of pets (68.2%) were presented for sterilisation from urban areas than rural areas (31.8%). About 49.8% of men and 24.2% of women that presented pets for sterilisation came from urban areas, whilst 20.1% of the women and 11.7% of the men that presented pets for sterilisation were from rural areas. Of all the pets presented for sterilisation, the majority were male-owned (64%, n = 2206). Pets were mainly presented for sterilisation at < 2 years (41.1%), 2 to < 4 years (32.4%) and 4 to < 6 years (15.4%). The naming of pets was mainly after people (42.4%), circumstances (20.6%) and appearance (15.5%). This community engagement exercise yielded valuable demographic data indicating that pet origin, sex and species and owner gender were important factors in determining the voluntary presentation of pets for sterilisation in the study area.
Highlights
The Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA), Have a Heart Foundation, and the Cat Protection Society are some of the animal welfare societies in Namibia whose main objective is to promote and safeguard the welfare of animals in the country
In Namibia, private clinics and public institutions work together with animal welfare organisations to undertake sterilisation campaigns of animals belonging to underserved communities that cannot afford the cost of sterilisation
Some publications deal with demographics of both dogs and cats (ASPCA 2011; British Small Animal Veterinary Association [BSAVA] 2013; British Veterinary Association [BVA] 2018; Clancy & Rowan 2003; Downes et al 2015; Odendaal 1994; Kass, Johnson & Weng 2013), whilst fewer publications deal with the demographics of cat population alone (Carvelli, Lacoponi & Scaramozzino 2016; Johnston, Szczepanski & McDonagh 2017; Murray et al 2015)
Summary
The Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA), Have a Heart Foundation, and the Cat Protection Society are some of the animal welfare societies in Namibia whose main objective is to promote and safeguard the welfare of animals in the country. The issue of overpopulation of dogs and cats is a constant irritant to society in light of its public health, socio-economic and animal welfare implications all over the world (American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals [ASPCA] 2011; Bauer et al 2016; Faver 2009; Fennell 1999; Hassan & Fromsa, 2017; Ortega-Pacheco et al 2007). The population of dogs and cats in Namibia is currently estimated to be between 158 282 and 167 037 owned dogs and 56 149 owned cats (Government of the Republic of Namibia 2017; Namibia Statistics Agency 2015a). Some publications deal with demographics of both dogs and cats (ASPCA 2011; British Small Animal Veterinary Association [BSAVA] 2013; British Veterinary Association [BVA] 2018; Clancy & Rowan 2003; Downes et al 2015; Odendaal 1994; Kass, Johnson & Weng 2013), whilst fewer publications deal with the demographics of cat population alone (Carvelli, Lacoponi & Scaramozzino 2016; Johnston, Szczepanski & McDonagh 2017; Murray et al 2015)
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