Dog Population Management

Dog population in any area can be classified into free-roaming, semi-owned, and owned dogs.

Free-roaming dogs go wherever they want and don’t have a clear owner or caretaker. They may wander around neighbourhoods, streets, and even rural areas, looking for food and water by scavenging.
Semi-owned dogs roam freely within a neighbourhood or village but have a known owner who provides some care and attention. These dogs may not be kept in a fenced yard or on a leash, but they may still have a degree of socialization with people and may receive occasional food or veterinary care from their owners.
Owned dogs have a clear owner who takes responsibility for their care, including feeding, grooming, medical treatment, and exercise. These dogs may be kept in a fenced yard or on a leash when outside and may receive regular veterinary care, training, and socialization with people and other animals.

Dog culling refers to controlling the population of street dogs by killing them. The practice of culling street dogs has a long history in India and has been a contentious issue for many years.
At the beginning of the 20th century, the British colonial government in India started killing street dogs to stop the spread of rabies. But this strategy didn’t work well because the dog population quickly grew back and the disease kept spreading. Post-independence, different Indian state governments kept running programs to get rid of dogs, often by poisoning or electrocuting them. These programs were often met with widespread protests and criticism from animal welfare groups.

Animal Birth Control, or ABC, is a government-funded program in India that aims to control the number of street dogs by sterilizing and vaccinating them. The Animal Welfare Board of India and the Ministry of Environment and Forests came up with the idea for the program in 2001. As part of the ABC program, stray dogs are caught, sterilized through surgery, and given vaccines to stop diseases like rabies from spreading. After the surgery and vaccination, the dogs are released back into their original territory. The program also includes public education campaigns to promote responsible pet ownership and encourage people to report cases of dog bites and rabies.
The ABC program has been successful in reducing the population of street dogs in many Indian cities and has also helped control the spread of rabies. It is an important part of India’s efforts to help animals and keep the number of street dogs under control humanely and effectively.

Sterilization is a good long-term way to control the number of stray dogs because it takes care of the problem’s root cause: uncontrolled breeding. By sterilizing dogs, the number of puppies they have is cut down, which causes the population to go down over time. This is different from culling or killing, which are only short-term solutions that don’t solve the problem of uncontrolled breeding.
Responsible pet ownership is crucial to reducing the number of abandoned pet dogs. Pet owners can help reduce the number of abandoned pets by following measures such as spaying and neutering, providing adequate food and shelter, and providing regular veterinary care.

To control the number of dogs, you need a comprehensive plan that uses different methods, such as sterilization, vaccination, adoption, education, and enforcement. By addressing the root causes of dog overpopulation and promoting responsible pet ownership, we can help create safer and healthier communities for dogs and humans.