A Survey on Vaccination and Disease Occurrence in Municipal and Non-Profit Animal Shelters in Portugal

SIMPLE SUMMARY: A common belief is that animal shelters still have a high occurrence of disease. Few studies are available describing the current situation in animal shelters. We characterized this issue with an online questionnaire sent to animal shelters in Portugal. Apart from municipal animal shelters, other types of animal shelters were also included, such as associations which are non-profit organizations. The response to this questionnaire was voluntary. More veterinarians responded for municipal shelters, whereas more non-vets answered the questionnaire on behalf of associations. Preventive measures such as worming, vaccination and the use individual animal medical records were widespread among both shelter types. Many shelters indicated keeping animals for over 1 year. This excessive length of stay should be reduced, for example by better training of staff and the availability of adequate shelter management software. Puppy re-vaccination every 2 to 4 weeks was indicated by both shelter types and final vaccination at 16 weeks was predominantly indicated by associations. Most adult animals were revaccinated annually. The three most reported diseases were parvovirus and mange in dogs, cat flu and panleukopenia in cats, and ringworm in both species. Additional information on disease occurrence should be obtained by objective monitoring. ABSTRACT: Few studies are available describing animal shelters in Portugal. The aim was to characterize prophylactic measures and disease occurrence in shelters with a questionnaire. The response rates of 67 shelters (42 municipal shelters, 25 associations) were compared by the Fisher’s exact test. More veterinarians answered for municipal shelters (98%) than for associations (40%; p < 0.001). Over 80% of the respondents indicated using individual medical records and routine prophylaxis. Excessive length of stay for dogs was reported by 54% of associations and 33% of municipal shelters. Management tools should be promoted to improve the situation. Puppy vaccinations were similar and a final vaccination at 16 weeks was indicated by >33% of shelters. Annual revaccination of dogs was reported more frequently by associations (88%) than municipal shelters (55%; p = 0.02). The three most reported diseases were parvovirus and mange in dogs, upper respiratory disease and panleukopenia in cats, and dermatophytosis in both species. Similar response rates for diagnostic options were obtained by both shelter types, except for distemper. Testing for feline retroviruses was indicated by most shelters (>69%), but only a few (<24%) confirmed positive test results. Clinical diagnoses should be complemented by testing. Additional information on disease occurrence should be obtained by objective monitoring.