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Published on: December 15, 2023
Estimating spatial and temporal trends of dog importation into Canada from 2013 to 2019
Jillian Blackmore1, Helen Gerson1, Katie M Clow1
1Public Health Agency of Canada, 180 Queen Street West, Toronto, Ontario M5V 3L7 (Blackmore); Canada Border Services Agency, 100 Metcalfe Street, 8th Floor, Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0L8 (Gerson); University of Guelph, 50 Stone Road East, Guelph, Ontario N1G 2W1 (Clow); Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, 1 Stone Road West, Guelph, Ontario N1G 4Y2 (Anderson); Public Health Agency of Canada, 52 Campus Drive, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan S7N 5B4 (Tataryn).
Background And Objective:
For several years, there has been growing concern over the public and animal health impacts of dog importation, with many Canadian veterinarians reporting increasing diagnoses of exotic pests and pathogens. This study is the first to estimate the number of dogs imported into Canada and describe spatial and temporal trends.
Animal And Procedure:
Commercial and a subset of personal dog importation records, obtained from the Canada Border Services Agency, were used to estimate the total number of dogs imported into Canada from 2013 to 2019.
Results:
The number of dogs imported annually increased by > 400% over the study period, with > 37 000 dogs imported in 2019. The majority of dogs (72%) were imported from the United States and Eastern Europe, and 23% originated in a country considered high-risk for canine rabies.
Conclusion:
Dog importation into Canada has increased substantially over time. Moving forward, education and improved tracking will be essential.
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