tRabies is a viral infectious disease that affects all mammals, including humans. Factors asso-ciated with the incidence of rabies include the presence and density of susceptible hosts andpotential reservoirs. Currently, Chile is declared free of canine-related rabies, but there is anoverpopulation of dogs within the country and an emergence of rabies in bats. Our objec-tives are to determine potential areas for bat-borne rabies spillover into dog populationsexpressed as a risk map, and to explore some key features of dog ownership, abundance,and management in Chile. For the risk map, our variables included a dog density surface(dog/km2) and a distribution model of bat-borne rabies presence. From literature review,we obtained dog data from 112 municipalities, which represent 33% of the total munici-palities (339). At country level, based on previous studies the median human per dog ratiowas 4.8, with 64% of houses containing at least one dog, and a median of 0.9 dog per house.We estimate a national median of 5.3 dog/km2, and a median of 3680 dogs by municipal-ity, from which we estimate a total population of 3.5 × 106owned dogs. The antirabiesvaccination presented a median of 21% of dogs by municipality, and 29% are unrestrictedto some degree. Human per dog ratio have a significant (but weak) negative associationwith human density. Unrestricted dogs have a negative association with human densityand income, and a positive association with the number of dogs per house. Considering dogdensity by municipality, and areas of potential bat-borne rabies occurrence, we found that163 (∼48%) of Chilean municipalities are at risk of rabies spillover from bats to dogs. Riskareas are concentrated in urban settlements, including Santiago, Chile’s capital. To validatethe risk map, we included cases of rabies in dogs from the last 27 years; all fell withinhigh-risk areas of our map, confirming the assertive risk prediction. Our results suggestthat the use of dog population parameters may be informative to determine risk areas forbat–rabies spillover events. In addition, we confirm that dog abundance is a neglected andemerging public health concern in Chile, particularly within urban areas, which deservesprompt intervention.