WILD dogs have been singled out by the wool industry as a high priority for on-farm research, writes KIM WOODS
All too often Prof Linton Staples hears the raw pain caused by wild dogs.
Farmers on the end of the phone line pleading for help to their problems.
As managing director of Animal Control Technologies in Melbourne, Linton is at the forefront of pest-animal management.
"My gut feeling is the wild dog problem is worse in Victoria than currently believed," he said.
"But Victoria is not alone with the problem."
Greg would like to see a unified national approach to wild dog control.
"We all need to sing off the same hymn sheet," he said.
In 2008-09, 331 wild dogs were trapped or shot in Victoria, with annual control costs amounting to $3.7 million.
National wild dog facilitator Dr Greg Mifsud is working at raising the profile of wild dog control through co-operative management plans.
"The voting population in the cities is not aware of the stress and financial cost that wild dogs cause to landholders," Greg said.
"We need to identify priority areas for management and research, share ideas and build an overall view of what's going on as dogs don't stop at state boundaries."
Greg works with Queensland shires such as Murweh, known as the "Bermuda Triangle" of wild dogs.
A lack of control methods and the replacement of sheep by cattle have led to an escalation in local dog numbers.
Today, Queensland shire councils are broken into working groups - each with their own dogger who works every property in the area.
In Victoria, Greg said trapping and baiting were both needed to improve the overall effectiveness of control methods and reduce dog numbers.
Alternative methods, such as guardian dogs to protect livestock, are being incorporated.
A best-practice manual on guardian dogs and an instructional DVD on using foothold traps are due to be launched at a field day at Corryong on May 6.
"We will continue to lobby the Federal Government for more resources for wild dog management and research," Greg said.
In Victoria's North East, trappers report rising dog numbers on private cleared land after years of drought in bushland.
"We have had (wild dogs) caught within 100m of the Bullioh (east of Tallangatta) football ground," a trapper said.
"We are not catching dogs right out in the rough country any more."
Burrowye beef producer Noel Cheshire said 30km of new dog-proof fencing had been erected in the Tallangatta valley, with a further 40km planned.
"We have trouble with deer shooters leaving carcasses behind and acting as a food source for pups to be reared on," Noel said.
"After years of drought there is little wildlife left in the bush and the dogs are coming in closer.
"The survival rate of dogs is higher and they are having more pups than in the past."
Greg Mifsud said the topography of Victoria limited the distance wild dogs could travel.
But , he said, GPS tracked one dog from Gippsland to Canberra and back, following ridge lines.
"We are using everything at our disposal - baiting, trapping and shooting," Greg said.
"We are trying to get as many new tools as possible so we are not limited."
Greg said the potential new wild dog bait, PAPP, would convince many landholders to undertake control.
"As PAPP has an antidote, it will fill those gaps where producers are reluctant to use 1080," he said.
"We also need to shift the mindset of farmers from the number of dogs trapped to the number of attack-free days."
Greg said satellite tracking and mapping of bait stations meant dog programs were "no longer mythical" in southern NSW.
"We can show people maps of where the bait stations are and this gives them comfort," he said.
Victorian wild dog control plans were too broad, Greg said.
"There is a lot of knowledge out there and we shouldn't be ignoring that," he said.
"We need to work closely with the community and have local area plans so people have confidence in the program.
"Then, if a dog kills a sheep it will be a rarity."
