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In 2011, authorities of Quito, the capital city of Ecuador, approved an ordinance to promote public health and animal welfare through responsible pet ownership promotion. The population of dogs was not known, and the relationships between dog abundance, socio-economic factors, prevalence of zoonotic gastrointestinal parasites, and pet ownership responsibility had not been investigated. The objectives of this study were (i) to estimate the human:dog (HD) ratio, (ii) to examine the relationship between household factors and responsible pet ownership and (iii) to estimate the prevalence of households with one or more dogs infected with intestinal parasites in Quito, Ecuador. Space-based random sampling procedures were used for estimation of HD ratios in stray dogs and confined owned dogs. The relationship between household factors and a responsible pet ownership index was examined using logistic regression. Dog fecal samples were tested for intestinal parasites. Among stray dogs, the observed HD ratio was 58:1. Among dogs kept indoors, the observed HD ratio was 3,5:1. A positive interaction effect between number of dogs in study households and household living conditions (a proxy for household wealth) on responsible pet ownership was observed, which we discuss in this report. Prevalence of households with dogs infected with intestinal parasites was 28% (95% CI = 21-37). Ancylostoma spp. was the most frequent intestinal parasite in study dogs kept indoors. This study provides new information that can be used by policy makers to formulate, implement, and evaluate public policies and education programs aimed at enhancing pet ownership responsibility in Ecuador.

The land iguanas, Conolophus pallidus and Conolophus subcristatu are large and charismatic lizards endemic to the Galápagos archipelago, but little information exists on their normal health parameters. The former is restricted to Santa Fe island, while C. subcristatus inhabits the islands of the central and western region of the archipelago. Both species are classified as vulnerable by the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. As part of a population health assessment authorized by the Galápagos National Park, wild adult iguanas from three islands (North Seymour, South Plazas, and Santa Fe) were captured in July 2018. Data from a single C. subcristatus X Amblyrhynchus cristatus hybrid captured on South Plazas is also included. We analyzed blood samples drawn from 52 healthy wild adult land iguanas captured on three islands. An iSTAT portable blood analyzer was used to obtain values for pH, lactate, pO2, pCO2, HCO3-, sO2%, hematocrit, packed cell volume (PCV), hemoglobin Na, K, iCa, and glucose. Standard laboratory hematology techniques were employed for PCV determination; resulting values were also compared to the hematocrit values generated by the iSTAT. Body temperature, heart rate, respiratory rate, and body measurements were also recorded and compared to previously published data for the marine iguana (Amblyrhynchus cristatus), which shares a common ancestor with the land iguana. The data reported here provide preliminary baseline values that may be useful in comparisons between captive and wild populations, between wild populations, and in detecting changes in health status among Galápagos land iguanas affected by anthropogenic threats, climate change, or natural disturbances.