India Needs a Novel Public-Private Partnership Program to Expand Surgical Dog Population Management to Support Canine Rabies Control Work

Abstract

This article brings a new perspective to the discussion on how to improve the implementation of humane dog population management and rabies control under the global goal of eliminating dog-mediated human rabies deaths by 2030. The author proposes that the existing stray-dog-focused animal birth control (ABC) activities be supplemented with an entirely new concept of public-private partnership (PPP) that directly addresses the very source of the stray dogs without requiring additional capital investment for fixed infrastructure from the public
sector. Instead, this PPP provides financial incentives for private sector veterinary clinics to develop their surgical services, especially in smaller towns where specific ABC programs don’t yet function effectively. By strengthening the existing veterinary service provider network, the proposed PPP aims to develop a wider range of veterinary surgery providers to help meet the demands for surgical population control of dogs as a supportive tool for rabies control. The key concept is the acknowledgment that in India, due to the great income disparity, most dog owners cannot be made responsible for having their dogs sterilized unless there is public sector support to make spay/neuter surgery more accessible and affordable for them. The private sector is in the best position to invest in the surgery skilled vets and good assistants, as well as in the required equipment,
medicine, and materials to perform the surgeries most cost-effectively while also maintaining safety and good surgical quality. The role of the public sector is to provide a subsidy scheme to make spay/neuter
affordable for the dog owners in the lower-income demographic groups. The owned dog registration system is the first step to facilitate this program, and it will also form the foundation of recording that all owned dogs are annually vaccinated against rabies.

How to cite this article:
Airikkala-Otter I. India Needs a Novel PublicPrivate Partnership Program to Expand Surgical Dog Population Management to Support Canine Rabies Control Work. APCRI J. 2025; 27(1): 17-22.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.24321/0973.5038.202503