Wild dogs prey on a variety of animals including mammals, birds and reptiles of all sizes from insects to water buffalo. However, they prefer to eat small and medium-sized mammals when available, including native mice, dunnarts, bandicoots and wallabies. Wild dogs have been implicated in the decline of several species, both historically and in the recent past.

Dingoes originated in Asia where they were present possibly 10 000 to 14 000 years ago and were derived from wolves. Aboriginal people brought the dingo to Australia approximately 4000 years ago. The dingo never reached Tasmania. Domestic dogs were brought into Australia by Europeans in 1788 and their release into the wild has continued since. Both dingoes and wild domestic dogs are the same species, Canis familiaris.

Learn More

FAQ: Wild dog impacts - Frequently asked questions about the impacts of wild dogs
FAQ: Wild dog biology, behaviour & ecology - What’s the difference between a Dingo and a wild dog? What time of year do wild dogs mate? What do they eat?
FAQ: Wild dog home ranges and movements - Information on where wild dogs live, where and how they move
FAQ: Wild dogs and poison baiting - Frequently asked questions about poison baiting for wild dog control
Wild dog risks to threatened wildlife - Wild dogs prey on a variety of animals including mammals, birds and reptiles of all sizes from insects to water buffalo. However, they prefer to eat small and medium-sized mammals […]
Wild dog policy and legislation considerations - Legal status and management: Wild dogs are identified by the national Vertebrate Pests Committee as a ‘Category 5 / Extreme’ species. Category 5 means that the animal is a recognised […]
Peri-urban wild dogs – research snapshot and management recommendations - Wild dog impacts are felt in all regions of Australia, both regional and urban. Local authorities throughout Australia have consistently identified the need to improve our understanding of wild dog ecology and develop control […]

Act

STEP 1

Define the problem and assess the impacts

STEP 2

Set measurable objectives

STEP 3

Plan your response

STEP 4

Control and monitor

Wild dog management strategies are most successful when people work together. Because wild dogs do not respect tenure boundaries such as fences, borders or land uses, wild dog managers in one area are likely to be affected by the actions or inaction of people in surrounding areas. Working together ensures that everyone has input into a management approach. This typically requires a little bit of work from a lot of people, rather than a lot of work from a few people.

A strategic approach to managing wild dogs broadly involves: defining the issue, developing a plan of action with achievable and measurable goals, putting the plan into action, monitoring progress, evaluating the plan, and making adjustments and improvements before trying it again.

Glovebox Guide for Managing Wild Dogs - The Glovebox Guide for Managing Wild Dogs is a general guide to managing populations of wild dogs in Australia.
Working Plan to Manage Wild Dogs (green book) - This document outlines a six-step strategic approach to the management of dingoes and other wild dogs
A field guide to poison baiting: wild dogs and foxes - Download the Field Guide The Field Guide to Poison Baiting: Wild Dogs and Foxes provides information on the strategies and approaches to deliver baiting programs for wild dogs and foxes. […]
Tools and strategies for wild dog management - Tools to control wild dogs There is a variety of different lethal and non-lethal tools available to control wild dogs. These include poison baits, traps, shooting, fencing, guard animals and […]
Participatory wild dog management: views and practices of Australian wild dog management groups - Attacks by wild dogs (including dingoes, feral domestic dogs and hybrids) on livestock have an adverse effect on Australia’s agricultural production and agricultural communities. The objective of this project, undertaken […]
Working dog safety & first aid - Provides information on safety and first aid for working dogs in case of poisoning by 1080 or PAPP, or leg injury due to traps.
Facilitating the strategic management of wild dogs throughout Australia - The National Wild Dog Facilitator project was developed to meet the growing need for co-ordinated and strategic management of wild dogs across Australia
An investigation of aerial baiting rates for strategic control of wild dogs - Outcomes of a series of trials to determine the efficacy of aerial baiting for wild dogs at two bait distribution rates, 10 baits per kilometre of flown transect and 40 baits per km.

Standard Operating Procedures – wild dog control

DOG006: Baiting of wild dogs with para-aminopropi-ophenone (PAPP) - Wild dogs, which include feral domestic dogs, dingoes and their hybrids, prey on livestock causing significant impact on agricultural production. Methods of control include poisoning with para-aminopropiophenone (commonly known as […]
Model code of practice for the humane control of wild dogs - The aim of this code of practice is to provide information and recommendations to vertebrate pest managers responsible for the control of wild dogs. It includes advice on how to […]
DOG001: Trapping of wild dogs using padded-jaw traps - Trapping of wild dogs is often used where poison baiting is less effective, for example, in or around lambing paddocks where there is abundant food. Trapping is useful for targeting […]
DOG002: Trapping of wild dogs using cage traps - Trapping of wild dogs is used where poison baiting is less effective, for example, in or around lambing paddocks where there is abundant food. Trapping is useful for targeting individual […]
DOG004: Ground baiting of wild dogs with 1080 - Wild dogs, which include feral domestic dogs, dingoes and their hybrids, prey on livestock causing significant impact on agricultural production. Methods of control include poisoning with sodium fluoroacetate (commonly known […]
DOG003: Ground Shooting of Wild Dogs - Shooting of wild dogs is undertaken by government vertebrate pest control officers, landholders and professional or experienced amateur shooters. Shooting is usually an opportunistic method of control although it can […]
DOG005: Aerial baiting of wild dogs with 1080 - Wild dogs, which include feral domestic dogs, dingoes and their hybrids, prey on livestock causing significant impact on agricultural production. Methods of control include poisoning with sodium monofluoroacetate (1080), trapping, […]
GEN001: Methods of euthanasia - The word euthanasia means an easy death and should be regarded as an act of humane killing with the minimum of pain, fear and distress. Euthanasia of a range of […]
GEN002: The care & management of dogs used in the control of pest animals - Dogs are used for a range of pest animal control operations. This procedure provides advice on first aid and basic care for dogs used in these situations. It is written […]

Connect

Find help in your region Register with Wild Dog Scan

Greg Mifsud is the The National Wild Dog Management Coordinator.

Greg’s role is to guide and mentor State, NRM and Industry-funded wild dog Coordinators in supporting and developing functional local wild dog management groups.

Greg is based in Toowoomba, Qld.

Videos

Video: Dogabait and Foxecute – Additional tools for pest predator management in Australia. - This video provides a short introduction to Dogabait and Foxecute (PAPP baits), presented by Chris Roach from Animal Control Technologies Australia.
Video: Canid Pest Ejector (CPE) for fox and wild dog control - Rob Hunt is a Senior Pest Officer with the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service. In this training video, Rob describes and demonstrates the Canid Pest Ejector for wild dog […]
Video: Wild Dog Scan app tutorial - WildDogScan is a free digital resource for landholders, the community and pest controllers to map sightings of wild dogs, their impacts, and control activities in their local area.
Wild dog trapping in the woodlands of pastoral Queensland - Video series demonstrating methods and equipment used in wild dog trapping in and around the Toowoomba region, Queensland.
Wild dog trapping in the northern tablelands of NSW - Video series demonstrating methods and equipment used in wild dog trapping in and around the Tenterfield region, Northern Tablelands NSW
Wild dogs in Australia – interviews with Peter Fleming - This series of short videos talks about the wild dog problem in Australia, trophic cascade and mesopredator release hypothesis and the importance of community engagement in wild dog management
Wild dog trapping in the Rangelands - Video series demonstrating some of the methods and equipment used in wild dog trapping in the arid and semi-arid rangelands of pastoral Western Australia.

Case studies

Community Landcare Case Study – for the National Wild Dog Action Plan - This project aimed to describe and analyze a ‘community’ approach by both Landcare Groups (LCGs) and Wild Dog Associations (WDAs) to highlight best practice community approaches, both generally and specifically […]
Community action for wild dog management – a series of case studies - Wild dog management in Australia has historically been understood and studied from the scientific and technical perspective. This involved a focus on the science of best management, and the implementation […]
Paroo Model of Wild Dog Control – Western QLD - The Paroo Shire residents have been leaders in developing and implementing best practice in the coordinated control of wild dogs. Wild Dogs are defined as feral dogs, dingoes and hybrid […]
Learning from the past - Wild dog control has come a long way in recent years but the community needs to guard against complacency. Effective wild dog management results from a nil-tenure, collaborative, community-driven approach. […]
Best practice tools and strategies - The challenge is to match the most effective tools and strategies to each situation and location Multiple tools can be used to complement each other for proactive and reactive control […]
Wild dog control – the journey - Before collaborative community-based, landscape scale control strategies Wild dog impacts were causing some landholders emotional and economic distress. Playing the ‘blame game’ often distracted landholders from finding effective solutions. Knowledge […]
Wild dog management in Victoria today - Community-based control strategies deliver sustainable solutions The Victorian wild dog control program is considered best practice. A template-style delivery and response system ensures all producers can expect similar support. Community […]
Co-operation and extension - Tailored solutions using multiple engagement methods Best Wool Best Lamb (BWBL) – a producer-directed program aimed at promoting best practice agriculture. Groups were set up with a wild dog focus […]
Communication and understanding: Proactive dog control delivers - Effective management requires a plan of action All stakeholders need to be engaged and own the problem. Landholders and farmers need to be heard and understood. Helping farmers to help […]
Western division wild dog control – Western NSW - This case study investigates and documents the barriers and responses to improving wild dog management encountered between 2010 and 2016 in the Western Division of NSW. DOWNLOAD THE CASE STUDY […]
Brindabella and Wee Jasper – NSW/ACT - This case study provides an example of an industry recognised ‘best practice’ community-driven partnership approach to local wild dog management that operates across all land tenures. The approach attempts to […]
Meekatharra Rangelands Biosecurity Association – Western Australia - Situated on the Great Northern Highway, Meekatharra is the largest centre in the Murchison, easily accessible with excellent sealed roads from Perth in the south, Geraldton in the west and […]
Biteback Program – South Australia - This case study tells the story of a successful community-driven landscape-scale approach to managing wild dogs in the Northern Flinders region of South Australia. Ultimately the success of Biteback will […]
Carnarvon Rangelands Biosecurity Association – Western Australia - This case study on the Carnarvon Rangelands Biosecurity Association was commissioned by the National Wild Dog Action Plan to demonstrate the impact of the role of an administrator on wild […]