A "Humane and Sustainable Dog Population and Management" program has been initiated in Colombo (Sri Lanka) starting in 2007, including the establishment of a formal partnership between three primary partners: Colombo Municipal Council (CMC), Blue Paw Trust (BPT) and the World Society for the Protection of Animals (WSPA). The first phase of the program is planned for 2008-2012. In a second phase (after 2012), CMC will assume primary financial responsibility from WSPA. The current humane program is an evolution of the elimination and pound system of rabies control and dog population management that existed prior to 2007. Key components of the program include mass vaccination and targeted sterilization over the entire spectrum of the dog population; education of children and adults in bite prevention, rabies awareness, and responsible dog ownership; development of "Dog Managed Zones"; and training of CMC staff in relevant skills, including humane dog handling, recognizing dog behavioral signs, delivering responsible ownership messages to communities, and surgical neutering. Increased vaccination and dog management efforts resulting from existing national programs as well as the newly implemented pilot project have led to a considerable reduction in dog rabies cases [69, 70] . In addition, the combined education program on bite prevention, rabies awareness, and responsible dog ownership has led to greater primary knowledge and its retention. Specifically, 86% of primary school children and 90% of secondary school children gained the required knowledge immediately after education sessions, with 85% of primary and 78% of secondary school children maintaining this same level of knowledge after 6 months [70] .