{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,10,14]],"date-time":"2026-10-14T21:14:37Z","timestamp":1792012477030,"version":"4.4.0"},"reference-count":17,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"11","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,5,30]],"date-time":"2025-05-30T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1748563200000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"name":"Jeonju University"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Animals"],"abstract":"<jats:p>This study examined the socioeconomic and veterinary cost factors influencing dog abandonment and adoption outcomes across 162 regions in the Republic of Korea from 2021 to 2023. Unlike prior research, this study distinguished between intentionally abandoned dogs and those lost and subsequently returned to their owners, normalizing abandonment data by population. Using publicly available regional data and spatial regression models, we found that the number of people receiving unemployment benefits was consistently and negatively associated with the number of dog abandonments per 100,000 residents, which was normalized by total population to avoid potential errors. Rabies vaccination costs were also negatively associated with abandonment. In contrast, comprehensive income tax amounts\u2014a proxy for regional wealth\u2014were positively correlated with the percentage of dog abandonments reported in 2021 and 2023. Spatial Lag Models accounted for over 50% of the variance in the number of dog abandonments, confirming spatial dependence and highlighting the importance of geographically targeted animal welfare interventions. However, spatial patterns in adoption were less consistent. These findings highlight the importance of incorporating economic and spatial considerations into the design of public policies and shelter strategies to mitigate dog abandonment and enhance adoption outcomes.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/ani15111613","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,6,2]],"date-time":"2025-06-02T03:19:38Z","timestamp":1748834378000},"page":"1613","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":3,"title":["Socioeconomic and Spatial Determinants of Dog Abandonment and Adoption in the Republic of Korea (2021\u20132023)"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"15","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-2015-1979","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"HyungChul","family":"Rah","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Companion Animal and Plant Sciences, College of Future Convergence, Jeonju University, Jeonju 55069, Republic of Korea"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,5,30]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Rah, H., and Choi, S.-H. (2023). Are Veterinary Costs and Socioeconomic Status Risk Factors for Companion Animal Relinquishment in the Republic of Korea?. Animals, 13.","DOI":"10.3390\/ani13213406"},{"key":"ref_2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Ly, L.H., Gordon, E., and Protopopova, A. (2021). Exploring the relationship between human social deprivation and animal surrender to shelters in British Columbia, Canada. Front. Vet. Sci., 8.","DOI":"10.3389\/fvets.2021.656597"},{"key":"ref_3","unstructured":"Korean Animal Welfare Association (KAWA) (2024). 2023 Report on Animal Abandonment, Korean Animal Welfare Association (KAWA). 2024.10."},{"key":"ref_4","unstructured":"Korean Animal Welfare Association (KAWA) (2023). 2022 Report on Animal Abandonment, Korean Animal Welfare Association (KAWA). 2023.03."},{"key":"ref_5","unstructured":"Korean Animal Welfare Association (KAWA) (2022). 2021 Report on Animal Abandonment, Korean Animal Welfare Association (KAWA). 2022.01."},{"key":"ref_6","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Fischer, M.M., and Getis, A. (2009). GeoDa: An introduction to spatial data analysis. Handbook of Applied Spatial Analysis: Software Tools, Methods and Applications, Springer.","DOI":"10.1007\/978-3-642-03647-7"},{"key":"ref_7","unstructured":"Anselin, L. (2005). Exploring Spatial Data with GeoDaTM: A Workbook, Center for Spatially Integrated Social Science."},{"key":"ref_8","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"426","DOI":"10.3390\/ani5020364","article-title":"Epidemiology of dog and cat abandonment in Spain (2008\u20132013)","volume":"5","author":"Bowen","year":"2015","journal-title":"Animals"},{"key":"ref_9","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Hawes, S.M., Kerrigan, J.M., Hupe, T., and Morris, K.N. (2020). Factors informing the return of adopted dogs and cats to an animal shelter. Animals, 10.","DOI":"10.3390\/ani10091573"},{"key":"ref_10","first-page":"111","article-title":"Empirical Analysis on Factors Affecting Companion Animal Relinquishment: Policy Implications for Abandoned Animal Control","volume":"33","author":"Yoo","year":"2022","journal-title":"Korean Soc. Public Adm."},{"key":"ref_11","first-page":"2371","article-title":"Abandonment of dogs in Latin America: Strategies and ideas","volume":"14","author":"Sepiurka","year":"2021","journal-title":"Vet. World"},{"key":"ref_12","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"McDowall, S., Hazel, S.J., Chittleborough, C., Hamilton-Bruce, A., Stuckey, R., and Howell, T.J. (2023). The Impact of the Social Determinants of Human Health on Companion Animal Welfare. Animals, 13.","DOI":"10.3390\/ani13061113"},{"key":"ref_13","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"19","DOI":"10.1016\/j.prevetmed.2018.05.017","article-title":"Associated factors of companion animal neglect in the family environment in Pinhais, Brazil","volume":"157","author":"Monsalve","year":"2018","journal-title":"Prev. Vet. Med."},{"key":"ref_14","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Kremer, T., and Neal, S.M. (2024). Where Do They Come From and Where Do They Go? Socioeconomic Patterns in Dog Acquisition and Rehoming. Animals, 14.","DOI":"10.3390\/ani14091378"},{"key":"ref_15","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"161","DOI":"10.2460\/ajvr.71.2.161","article-title":"Mapping and measuring disparities in welfare for cats across neighborhoods in a large US city","volume":"71","author":"Patronek","year":"2010","journal-title":"Am. J. Vet. Res."},{"key":"ref_16","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Shih, H.Y., Paterson, M.B., and Phillips, C.J. (2019). Socioeconomic influences on reports of canine welfare concerns to the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) in Queensland, Australia. Animals, 9.","DOI":"10.3390\/ani9100711"},{"key":"ref_17","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"531","DOI":"10.1163\/15685306-12341473","article-title":"Socio-economic factors in companion animal relinquishment on the Sunshine Coast, Australia","volume":"28","author":"Carter","year":"2018","journal-title":"Soc. 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