The role of veterinary epidemiology in the study of free-roaming dogs and cats

Free-roaming dogs or cats are domestic dogs and cats that are not confined to a yard or house. Free-roaming dogs and cats have long caused major publi c-health problems and animal-welfare concerns in many countries. Free-roami ng dogs have been considered to be more of a problem than cats for several reasons, but the literature addressing dogs focuses primarily on their role in rabies spread and control. Free-roaming cats are becoming more of an is sue in countries where free-roaming dog problems are coming under control. The change in perception of pets, beyond their value as a commodity, has al so contributed to the increase in concern and attention focused on free-roa ming dogs and cats. Epidemiologists have contributed much to these studies of these populations and have potential to contribute even more. The epidem iologic methods and approaches, the experience of epidemiologists in interd isciplinary teams and the importance of considering the separate sub-popula tions in study design and analysis all are critical in designing and evalua ting interventions for free-roaming dogs and cats. In this paper, I will (1 ) describe a el of useful definitions regarding free-roaming dogs and cats. (2) summarize past and present topics of study in Free-roaming dogs and ca ts, using selected examples, (3) describe the limitations of existing work: and how epidemiologists might strengthen and improve this work, and (4) ou tline areas needing more attention by epidemiologists and why these are imp ortant. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. AH rights reserved.