USE OF DOGS IN WILDLIFE RESEARCH AND MANAGEMENT

1. USE OF DOGS IN WILDLIFE RESEARCH AND MANAGEMENT 1David K. Dahlgren, R. Dwayne Elmore, Deborah A. Smith, Aimee Hurt, Edward B. Arnett, and John W. Connelly Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks, and Tourism, Region 1 Office, Hays, KS 67601, USA

2. Prologue “My dog, by the way, thinks I have much to learn about partridges…” Aldp Leopold. Aldo Leopold with Flick (German shorthaired pointer) at the Riley Game Cooperative. Photo Courtesy of the Aldo Leopold Foundation, www.aldoleopold.org.”

3. Introduction • Dogs may seem like an outdated tool, and use of dogs may seem elementary, however using dogs can provide many types of field-based data collection otherwise unavailable to human-observers. • Dogs can offer a unique skill set in collection of data: Scenting abilities and ground coverage/speed. • New techniques (e.g., GPS) are available that improve the quality of data collected by dogs

4. Types of Dogs Sporting and Hound Breeds Herding Breeds Have been used for other wildlife tasks Herding or protection High intelligence and cooperation Can be used in non-game data collection (e.g., Scat and tortoise detection) • Innate interest in Game • Selected/inherited traits that are desirable • Must consider breed differences • Show vs. Field Lines within a breed (field lines more useful) • Individual traits may vary more than breed traits

5. General Information on Use of Dogs Uses: 5 Scientific Standards Same dog (s) Physically fit and trained Similar Climate Restrict search period (time of day) Balance search efforts: equal number of dogs and researchers per unit and area • Far superior detection abilities • Climatic conditions affect scenting conditions • Individual dogs differ • GPS Units designed for dogs: Examples -GarminTM Astro, RoamEOTM • Safety Concerns

6. Locating Wildlife Objectives: Techniques Distance Sampling Belt Transects Rare or declining species • Counting Animals • Distribution of Animals • Habitat Use • Demographic Info • Density Estimates Yellow rail are more easily located by pointing dogs

7. GPS Data ExampleCollected with a GarminTMAstro UnitExample of a transect within a 40.5 ha plot to monitor greater sage-grouse using pointing dogs on Parker Mountain, Utah, 2009. Data was collected using Garmin™ Astro GPS units. Transect line spacing was designed to reduce redundancy in the dog’s path, and to allow for distance sampling procedures. A problem with this design is that grouse detected at the corners do not have a perpendicular distance to transect line.

8. Example of Frequency Data Collected by Dogs An example of greater sage-grouse use data collected with pointing dogs in 40.5ha experimental plots on Parker Mountain, Utah, 2003–2004 (see Dahlgren et al. 2006). These data show a preference for Tebuthiuron (spike; a chemical treatment) treated plots for both grouse in general, and broods specifically. Using dogs allowed the classification of sage-grouse by age and sex, which benefited this project specifically designed to improve late brood-rearing habitat.

9. Author’s Dogs Used to Find Greater Sage-grouse Leks in Utah

10. Specimen and Carcass Collection Examples of Uses: Advantages Dogs have been show to find 92% of sparrow carcasses compared to 45% for human searchers. Bat carcasses around wind facilities where dogs located 71% and 81% of carcasses at two sites, while humans only found 42% and 14%, at the same sites, respectively • Carcass detection • Wind Farms • Fence Mortality • Poison or Disease Events • Example: Dogs used to collect ducks dying from botulism, and were able to quickly select live specimens

11. Carcass Collection Example Researcher Ed Arnett, Bat Conservation International,  searches for dead bats and birds beneath wind turbines with his Labrador retriever at a facility in south-central Pennsylvania.

12. Scat Detection Overview: Characteristics Sporting and Non-sporting Breeds, even mixed breeds Takes high reward drive from dog much like law enforcement dogs (not all dogs make good candidates) Specialized training needed • Emerging Field (see MacKay et al 2008) • Scat of many different mammalian Predators • Find more and quicker than human searchers

13. Scat Detection Example After alerting her handler to bear scat (upper center of photo) by sitting next to the sample, the scat-detection dog now ignores the scat while chewing on her reward toy while her handler prepares to label and collect the sample.  

14. Capturing and Marking Wildlife Advantages: Examples: Mountain Lion capture (hounds) Bear Capture (hounds) Grouse chick capture (pointing dogs) • More effective and efficient • Used for birds, mammals, and others

15. Studies of Wildlife Behavior • Underutilized Technique • Predator Simulation • Can be used in Wildlife Damage Management

16. Wildlife Damage Management Uses: Examples: Pyrenees and Akbash Livestock Dogs Border Collies chasing geese on golf courses Dogs used to detect brown snakes in Guam to control invasion Bear Control Karelian Bear Dogs and Laika Dogs • Livestock Guard Dogs • Predator Management • Urban Geese Control • Detection Dogs

17. Training and Handling • Most important issue with field data collection! • Lack of training is the most prone issue for frustration in the field! • Proper use of Electronic Collars (seek professional advice) • Many books available • Scat Detection: takes specialized training • Consider using a professional training, may be worth the cost • Bond formed with the dog can be highly rewarding

18. SUMMARY • Dogs bring a unique skill set to field-based data collection • Dogs can be used for many techniques including: Locating, Carcass Collection, Scat Detection, Capturing and Marking, Studying Wildlife Behavior, and Managing Wildlife Damage • Many breeds and types of dogs can be used, however, sporting, hound, and herding breeds are most popular • Training is the number one need before heading into the field for data collection