Using GIS to Target Spay Neuter Efforts

Large numbers of kittens entering shelters continue to be a major problem for many shelters. Geographic information systems (GIS) technology can be used to identify geographic areas that repeatedly are a source of kittens. Using shelter data regarding kitten intake from 2009-2011, GIS technology identified 16 statistically significant clusters in Tompkins County. Using this analysis, the shelter successfully applied for and received funding for targeted spay/neuter efforts. This presentation is given by Dr. Jan Scarlett, Professor of Epidemiology and Director of Maddie's® Shelter Medicine Program in the College of Veterinary Medicine at Cornell University, as part of the 2013 ASPCA/Maddie's® Shelter Medicine Conference.

Presented by Janet M. Scarlett, DVM

About Janet M. Scarlett: 

Dr. Scarlett is a Professor of Epidemiology and the Director of Maddie's® Shelter Medicine Program at Cornell University. In 2005, Dr. Scarlett led a team that launched a comprehensive shelter medicine program with residency training. Her current teaching and research interests focus on the prevention and control of diseases in animal shelters. She is also involved in the epidemiologic study of preventive factors for pet surplus in the United States including spay/neuter programs, pet trafficking, veterinary activities impacting relinquishment to animal shelters, and valid epidemiologic uses of shelter software programs.