USAToday

Denver gets blue ribbon as healthiest city for pets

By Patrick O'Driscoll, USA TODAY

DENVER — It's cool to be a cat in Kansas City, which has more feline veterinarians than any other city in America. It's supreme to be a dog in Washington, D.C., where 39 canine parks allow off-leash romping. It's good for both in the Twin Cities, where people spend more on their pets — $416 a year per household — than anywhere else.

But for all-around critter health and quality of life, Denver ranks best in show among the USA's 50 largest metropolitan areas in the first "Pet Healthiest Cities" report, to be released here Tuesday.

The Mile High City has more veterinarians — one for every 1,200 cats and dogs — than any other major city. The median for cities in the study is about one per 2,000.

Denver also has more hospital-accredited vet professionals. And it has the fewest fleas, owing to its high, dry climate. It ranks second, behind Anaheim, Calif., for fewest cases of the parasite heartworm and is second in spending on pets.

Denver, home of the popular Emergency Vets program on cable TV's Animal Planet channel, also rates second only to Minneapolis-St. Paul in the number of accredited ER vets.

The Twin Cities, with one pet doctor for every 1,285 pets, finished second overall. Columbus, Ohio, ranked third, with highest marks for its number of veterinary schools, internal medicine specialists and pet surgeons. The 50 areas studied encompass nearly half the USA's population.

The study, by a consortium of veterinary and animal welfare and behavior groups assembled by the Purina Pet Institute, analyzed 23 factors that affect pet health. The list includes accredited kennels and shelters, pet licensing requirements, anti-cruelty legislation, air and water quality, visiting-pet programs for shut-ins and the sick, even the number of dog shows. Point values for each were tallied to determine category winners and overall rankings, which are available online at www .purina.com/institute/.

The report's release begins a 5-year "pet agenda" of campaigns and education to improve the well-being of the USA's 131 million dogs and cats. Aine McCarthy, the institute's executive director and a veterinarian, says that only a few cities ranked well in anti-cruelty legislation (Portland, Ore., is tops). She also says that fewer than half the 50 cities have pet-healthy licensing laws, including features such as identification standards and reduced fees for spayed or neutered pets.

"What's most important for pet owners to know is that pet health starts at home," McCarthy says. "These are family members that just happen to walk on four legs."

Other highlights:

Salt Lake City was cited for most participants in Pet Partners, a program by the international non-profit group Delta Society that trains volunteers and their pets for companionship visits to hospitals, nursing homes and schools. Norfolk, Va., was rated highest for clean air and San Jose, Calif., for lowest number of smokers. "Air quality affects pets just like it does people," McCarthy says.

-- Anonymous, August 14, 2001