Bhubaneswar has stray dogs significantly higher than national average

Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) counted 47,126 stray dogs in Odisha’s capital; the number is 36 per 1000 people; This number is well above the national average of 11.

According to BMC, the census of stray dogs was carried out in two phases between September 18-21 and September 22-25 in all 67 wards in the corporation area. As many as 410 teams have been formed for the census under the supervision of senior veterinary officers.

According to the census results, there are currently 47,126 stray dogs in the BMC district. Of these, 23,047 are males, 15,552 are females, and 1,124 are puppies. Of these, 4,068 male dogs and 3,335 female dogs were sterilized.

“The current resident population of Bhubaneswar is around 13 lakh (1.3 million). The stray dog ​​population constitutes 3.62% of the human population, meaning there are around 703 stray dogs on an average in each ward,” says the BMC.

The top 10 wards with the most stray dogs are 23, 7, 49 and 65. Ward No. 23, which has the highest number of stray dogs, is 1,703, followed by Ward No. 6, with 1,062 dogs.

“According to the 20th National Livestock Census conducted by the Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying, Government of India, the density of stray dogs in BMC district is much higher than the national average. While the national average is 11 stray dogs per 1,000 people, there are 36 stray dogs per 1,000 people in Bhubaneswar, compared to the state average of 39,” the company said.

The BMC also said that the census was conducted to reduce conflict between stray dogs and humans, improve the health and welfare of stray dogs, develop an effective and efficient sterilization programme, reduce dog biting incidents and protect the public and dogs from deadly diseases such as rabies.