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1st Int. Transborder Conf. of the Timor Island: Timor %u2013 Science without borderDili, 7-8 May 202573Understanding Dog Keeping And Dog Meat Consumption Practices In Ainaro: Public Health Implications For Rabies Control In TLSAbrao J. Pereira, Alcino B. Soares, Abel Gomes, Marito B. GomesAnimal Health Department, Faculty of Agriculture, Universidade Nacional Timor Lorosae, Timor-LesteAbstractDogs they are well-known for its role as rabies reservoir. In Timor-Leste, dogs have been part of Timorese society%u2019s livelihoods, and dog meat consumption has also been reported but there is a limited understanding of dog demographic characteristics and dog meat consumption practices. Having such an understanding is useful to have targeted interventions to address dog-mediated rabies which has increasingly become a major public health concern in Timor-Leste. The first human rabies outbreak in the country was mid-2024. This was a cross-sectional study to investigate dog ownership patterns and characterize dog meat consumption practices with their implications for rabies transmission. A total of 247 study participants were estimated using Statulator based on a margin of error of 5%, a confidence level of 90%, and an expected proportion of 65% based on a prior study. Interview data were collected from households using a structured questionnaire developed in a mobile data-gathering platform known as Epicollect5. Face-to-face interviews were held between January and February 2025. Descriptive and inferential statistics were calculated using Jamovi. Human-to-dog ratio was also calculated. Our study showed that 96% of households own dogs in an average of two dogs (range: 1-11 dogs). Human-to-dog ratio of 1:2.3. The majority (71%) of the households have been raising local dogs (99%) for five years or more with major sources of dogs from breeding at home (56%) or received as gifts from friends and families (42%). Key reasons for owning dogs were to serve as house guards (99%), used as sacrificial offerings during cultural rituals, for dog meat (63%), and for dog sale (28%) with a median price for an adult dog USD 40 (range: USD 20-70). The majority (87%) of the study participants reported that their dogs have never been vaccinated against rabies. However, almost all of them (98%) were willing to be involved in dog vaccination campaign if introduced by the government. Dog meat consumption was prevalent among 90% of the respondents. Male (OR: 2.9; p-value: 0.01) and younger people (<42 years old) (OR:4.2; p-value:0.003) were more likely to consume dog meats. Dog meat commonly consumed during communal work (94%), rituals (85%), and consumption of alcohol during social bonding (41%). Most (66%) participants have not heard of rabies, and only 65% knew that rabies is transmissible through dog bite. Around 22% of the participants reported dog bite events in the last 12 months. This study revealed a very high proportion of dog ownership but a lack of rabies vaccination in Ainaro despite being close to rabies-infected areas such as Covalima. There is a need for targeted awareness campaigns to improve rabies awareness and introducing dog vaccination campaign as a means to prevent rabies in humans. While this study provides valuable insights, further study is required in other municipalities to comprehensively understand dog- keeping and dog meat consumption practices and their broader implications for rabies in TLS.Keywords: Dog, rabies, dog meat, Ainaro, Timor-Leste.