Develop a plan of action
This step turns stakeholders’ definition of the problem and their ideas about measurable objectives and goals into a plan of action. The aim of this process is to achieve agreement on actions, including any reactive action that may be required.
The earlier steps addressed why stakeholders are going to take action. Now is the time to discuss and agree upon key issues of who, what, when and where, with regard to undertaking specific actions. Stakeholders must estimate how much time and money the actions are expected to cost.
Using agreed objectives as the guide, stakeholders should record the details of their proposed actions in a table and draw them on a map. Choosing the right person for the task is important for the plan’s success, so it should be considered carefully. He/she will need to agree to do it, and their family or their boss might also need to agree. A key principle here is to ask, not assume.
Consider the following questions as a guide for formulating an action plan:
What can be done?
- strategic management — proactive actions to prevent problems occurring
- reactive management — responding to problems that have occurred
- a combination of both approaches
Where is management to be done?
- public lands
- private lands
- lands with absentee owners
Who will organise the management?
- state government staff
- contractors
- landholders and managers
- wild dog management groups
When is management to be done?
Strategic (give timeframe, target dates or triggers)
- strategically timed
- regular
- occasional
- ongoing
- once-off
Reactive (identify triggers)
- immediately
- later
What type of monitoring is to be done? (Identify who will keep records and how and when they will provide these to other stakeholders)
livestock damage records- dog sighting records, dogs shot or trapped
- DNA samples
- time spent planning and conducting management
- money and other resources used on control
- animal abundance or activity records (native animals as well as pests)
- number of baits laid and taken, or traps set
What actions are to be taken?
- fencing
- baiting — ground or aerial?
- trapping
- shooting — organised drives/ ambushes /howling
- livestock guarding animals
What plans involving neighbouring groups does this plan link in with?
- wild dog control groups
- fox control groups
- Landcare groups
- other (regional or state plans, biodiversity/pest strategies)
Guides to help develop a wild dog management plan:
- Have you got wild dogs? - Detecting the presence of wild dogs and their impacts: It is common for wild dogs to be present in an area but go unnoticed or unrecognised. No matter what colour […]
- 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.
- Guidelines for Preparing a Working Plan to Manage Wild Dogs (brown book) - These guidelines may be used to help stakeholders complete a working plan to manage wild dogs for any purpose.
- 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