Reliable information about national pet dog populations is an important contributor to informed decision-making, both by governments and national dog welfare organisations. In some countries, there is an improved understanding of aspects of the national pet dog population, but as yet limited published information is available in Ireland. The current study reviews the utility of existing data to inform our understanding of recent changes to the pet dog population in Ireland, including both biological and organisational processes. Based on national data on dog licencing and microchipping registration, pet dog numbers have remained relatively stable in recent years (ie prior to the COVID-19 pandemic). Since 2015, there has been a substantial decrease in the number of dogs managed through dog control centres. Although the completeness of the data are likely variable, there appears to be substantial, and increasing, number of dogs moving from Ireland to other countries, including UK, Sweden, Italy, Germany and Singapore. We also note an increase (albeit much smaller) in the number of dogs being moved into Ireland. This study highlights the challenges faced when using existing national data to gain insights into the dog population of Ireland. The linking of existing national databases (individual dog identification, dog licencing, dog control statistics) has the potential to improve both the representativeness and accuracy of information about the Irish pet dog population. In the next phases of our work, we will focus on the work of dog welfare organisations, given both the increased role played by these organisations and the substantial public funding that has been committed in this sector.

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了解爱尔兰共和国的犬只数量：来自现有数据源的洞察？

有关国家宠物狗种群的可靠信息是政府和国家狗福利组织做出明智决策的重要因素。在一些国家，人们对国家宠物狗种群的各个方面的了解有所提高，但在爱尔兰可获得的公开信息仍然有限。目前的研究回顾了现有数据的效用，以帮助我们了解爱尔兰宠物狗种群的最新变化，包括生物学和组织过程。根据有关狗许可和微芯片注册的国家数据，宠物狗的数量近年来（即在 COVID-19 大流行之前）保持相对稳定。自 2015 年以来，通过犬只控制中心管理的犬只数量大幅减少。尽管数据的完整性可能存在差异，但似乎有大量的狗从爱尔兰转移到其他国家，包括英国、瑞典、意大利、德国和新加坡。我们还注意到被转移到爱尔兰的狗的数量有所增加（尽管要小得多）。这项研究强调了在使用现有国家数据深入了解爱尔兰的狗群时所面临的挑战。现有国家数据库（个体狗识别、狗许可、狗控制统计）的链接有可能提高爱尔兰宠物狗种群信息的代表性和准确性。在我们工作的下一阶段，我们将专注于狗福利组织的工作，