Home, C., et al. “Canine Conundrum: Domestic Dogs as an Invasive Species and Their Impacts on Wildlife in India.” Animal Conservation, vol. 21, no. 4, 2017, pp. 275–282., doi:10.1111/acv.12389.
About the Author:
Chandrima Home, the author referenced in both the publications, is a PhD student at the Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE) in Bengaluru Area, India. She has two other publications, one of which also relates to wild dogs in India, and the other of which relates to ecology driving genetic variation with a focus on jungle cats. Doctor Abi Vanak, who also worked on both publications, is a Professor at ATREE in the Centre for Biodiversity and Conservation. He has a PhD and a Master’s degree in Wildlife Science, and a Bachelor’s of Science in Zoology. He has over 44 other publications, and several projects that he is currently working on, with topics related to disease, socioeconomic factors, and ecology. Both of these authors have had extensive education and past research, which leads me to believe they are both credible sources. Many of Vanak’s previous publications all relate to wild dogs in India, which shows that this is a specialty of his. Both of the readings are articles in a larger collection of journals, titled “Animal Conservation”. The latest issue is Volume 21, Issue 5, and was released in October of 2018. All publications in this collection relate to Biodiversity Conservation and Ecology.
Main Argument: The main argument of this paper is how domesticated animals, and those that have turned feral, are a serious, or even greater threat than other species, to local wildlife, flora and fauna. The dogs in question are unknowingly targeting endangered and vulnerable species and something has to be done, but what exactly? The author brings up the various methods of dealing with the overpopulation of the dogs and the destruction of the endangered flora and fauna. A survey was given to local residents about the issue and many thought the best solutions would be sterilization (so the population would eventually die back from the inability to reproduce), euthanasia, moving the dogs to shelters, or a variation of those three ideas. Many of the respondents had personally witnessed a dog attack and knew it had at least some effect on the local wildlife and people. The survey was the author’s main form evidence although he did bring in facts from other studies and articles. Overall, the author does a stellar job backing up his points with a strong use of case studies, facts, charts and graphs (note how on page 278, it is all graphics and charts). Everything is extremely credible and well documented. The charts and other graphics help to draw the reader in and it is extremely short and to the point, both of which make for a well developed, credible article.
Connection to Other Works: There are no real articles that we discussed in class that we found we were able to relate this one too, but there were several videos and topic that were discussed that were very similar. In class, we occasionally discussed how some cultures show certain likings to certain animals, or a phenomenon known as speciesism. The study we read about was conducted in India, but one can easily infer how dogs are treated in India is much different from other places, such as the United States or Canada. Based on this study, it is implied that the dogs are feral and mostly roam in packs. In the United States (at least in New England), dogs are mainly treated as family members. In fact, I have literally never seen a stray dog just roaming the streets. There is also another connection to other works that can be made with this article. There were also ways discussed on how to keep the population of stray dogs down. At a Danish Zoo, a giraffe was killed due to a lack of space. Other animals suffer the same fate, mainly through euthanasia or a quick bullet to the head. In the case of the dogs roaming the streets, a large chunk of the population control is done with euthanasia. They want to decide the most effective, efficient and humane way to keep the population of both animals down. Whether or not the people carrying out the killings is the right thing to do is another matter entirely.
Questions: What are some of the other invasive species we should be trying to eliminate?
What effect do the invasive species have on their environment and what does it mean for those that live near them?
You always hear about certain plants, bugs, etc. being invasive, but never anything about domesticated animals. Is there a reason for this? And if so, what is that reason?