Development of the Mata Hari Judas canid

Background

Control of feral canids, such as wild dogs and foxes, is important to protect native wildlife in Australia. Current control methods such as trapping, baiting, and free shooting typically fail to eliminate the entire feral population, allowing feral animals to persist and recover in the environment. The Mata Hari Judas (MHJ) canid is a novel approach to feral canid management, and has been successfully used to eradicate other feral animals such as goats (K. Campbell, 2007; K. J. Campbell, Baxter, Murray, Coblentz, & Donlan, 2007). A MHJ animal is a female that has been hormonally treated to display persistent oestrus; the MHJ female can be released to find conspecifics and subsequently tracked to find remnant animals in a population.

Aims

Develop a MHJ canid using the domestic dog as a model for feral dogs and foxes
Apply the treatment protocol from domestic bitches to develop a MHJ feral bitch and MHJ vixen
Perform field studies to determine if the MHJ bitch/vixen is successful in attracting/ locating feral dogs and foxes

Methodology

Domestic bitches are treated with several different hormonal implants which are likely to induce persistent oestrus, and evaluated daily for physical and behavioural signs of oestrus.
Once a suitable treatment protocol is identified, wild caught vixens and/or feral bitches will undergo similar treatment. A GPS radio-collar placed on the MHJ female will allow these animals to be tracked in the wild.
Interactions between the MHJ females and conspecifics will be monitored using camera traps and direct observation.

Expected outcomes

We expect to find a treatment that is both safe and effective for inducing persistent oestrus, and that the MHJ canid will be useful in identifying and eradicating remnant populations of feral animals.

References

Campbell, K. (2007). Manipulation of the reproductive system of feral goats (Capra hircus) to increase the efficacy of Judas goats: field methods utilising tubal sterilisation, abortion, hormone implants and epididymectomy.

Campbell, K. J., Baxter, G. S., Murray, P. J., Coblentz, B. E., & Donlan, C. J. (2007). Development of a prolonged estrus effect for use in Judas goats. Applied Animal Behaviour Science, 102(1), 12-23.