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KMID : 1094020140310010031
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Journal of Veterinary Clinics
2014 Volume.31 No. 1 p.31 ~ p.35
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A Cross-sectional Study on the Prevalence of Canine Obesity and Associated Risk Factors in Chuncheon, Kangwon Province
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Pak Son-Il
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Abstract
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As with humans, overweight or obesity is a major health concern in the companion animal population. A cross-sectional questionnaire-based survey of dog owners attending primary small animal veterinary practices fromdifferent areas in Chuncheon, Kangwon province, Korea was undertaken to explore the relationships between socioeconomicand other relevant risk factors associated with canine obesity. In addition, the author was to estimate theprevalence of obesity compared to published literatures for dogs. Owners were asked about dog age, neuter status,feeding habits, dog exercise, household income and owner age. The body condition score (BCS) of the dogs wasalso assessed. Multivariable binary logistic regression was used to assess the association between BCS and potentialrisk factors controlling for confounding variables, using odds ratios (OR), 95% confidence intervals (CIs). A total of275 dogs (136 males and 139 females) aged 1-12 years (mean age 5.6 ± 3.7 years) were surveyed in 2013. Of these,46.9% of dogs (n = 129) were classed as an ideal body shape (BCS = 3), 30.9% (n = 85) were overweight (BCS = 4),8.4% (n = 23) were obese (BCS = 5) and 13.8% (n = 38) were underweight (BCS = 1 or 2). Neutered males and spayedfemales had the highest prevalence of obesity (43.4% and 33.9%); intact females had the lowest prevalence of obesity(31.6%). In univariable model, risk factors associated with canine obesity are multifactorial and include owner income,owner age, age of dog, neuter status, frequency of feeding per day, frequency of snacks and consultation with veterinarianon dog’s weight. In final multivariable logistic regression model, dogs whose owners reported no consultation withveterinarians for weight management were significantly more likely to be obesity than ideal (OR = 7.6, 95% CI, 4.2-13.8; p < 0.0001). This study showed a high prevalence of obesity in domestic companion dogs. Since this was across-sectional study with small samples, the association of canine obesity with risk factors warrants more research. To the author’s best knowledge, this is the first Korean study on dog body condition and obesity.
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KEYWORD
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dog, obesity, risk factor, prevalence
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