translated from Spanish: Subdere launched first National Pet Care and Health Survey

The Protected Pet program of the Undersecretariat of Regional Development (Subdere) in collaboration with the School of Veterinary Medicine of the Catholic University, launched the First National Survey of Responsible Ownership of Pets and Companion Animals, which seeks, among other data, to obtain information regarding how animals reach their forks, what is their favorite food, whether they are sterilized or how often they go to the vet. The survey was sent to all holders registered in the National Pet Registry, where more than 1.7 million dogs and cats across the country are registered. The survey, however, will also be open to those who wish to participate and are not part of that list. To participate, interested parties must enter the site tenenciaresponsablemascotas.cl or through the social networks of the Mascot Protegida program or the Subdere. The application of the survey will be extended for 28 days from August 19 to September 26 at 11.59 p.m. The questions are divided into five sections, of which the first corresponds to the number of pets that the person owns, method of obtaining and whether or not he has a microchip. The remaining four have to do with health, food and hygiene, recreation and behavior and the owner’s appreciation of the pet. The Undersecretary of Regional Development, María Paz Troncoso, said that the survey will be a valuable tool for the elaboration of public policies focused on the general well-being of pets. “They will allow us to detect in which areas there are greater needs for state support, but also to obtain epidemiological data and to know the profile of those who have pets in Chile, in order to intensify or redirect the efforts we make,” he said. In addition, the survey will serve, as explained by the national coordinator of the Protected Pet program, Carolina Guerrero, for the elaboration of a profile of pet owners. In the field of Health, the body in charge of carrying out the statistical and epidemiological analysis will be the School of Veterinary Medicine of the UC. The undergraduate director of the race, Fernando Mardones, said that knowing the aspects that will be studied “is vital, and through this research we hope to carry out a first data survey with certain epidemiological characteristics that allow a positioning of this information at a national level”.

Original source in Spanish