IUCN / SSC Cat Specialist Group - Digital Cat Library |
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| Linnell, J.D.C.; Lescureux, N. | |
| Livestock guarding dogs. Cultural heritage icons with a new relevance for mitigating conservation conflicts | |
| 2015 Full Book | |
The work described in this report constitutes a pilot action on large carnivores developed within the project Support to the European Commission's policy on large carnivores under the Habitats Directive - phase 2 (contract no. 07.0307/2013/654446/ SER/B.3), financed by the European Commission via the Istituto di Ecologia Applicata, Rome, with guidance from the Large Carnivore Initiative for Europe (IUCN/SSC LCIE). It's objective was to inspire best practices and improve communication between stakeholders, specifically by developing resources about livestock guarding dogs that explore their historical use and relevance for helping reduce conflicts between livestock and large carnivores in the 21st century. The contents are based on an accumulation of experience that has come from within multiple projects, many of which have been co-funded by the EC's LIFE program. This experience has been co-developed by the work of livestock producers, agricultural specialists and environmentalists. In addition, we build on cultural historical and ethnographic research that the authors have conducted in recent years. This has involved working with and interviewing many shepherds and livestock breeders across southern, central and eastern Europe, including both those who have always worked with livestock guarding dogs and those trying to integrate these dogs into their grazing operation for the first time. On the one hand, we hope that this report will increase the level of awareness of both the heritage value and modern day usefulness of these dogs for protecting livestock from large carnivore predation. On the other hand, we are also trying to communicate a balanced view concerning the challenges and limitations of using livestock guarding dogs in a modern context. There is no magic solution to the complex challenges that large carnivores represent for livestock producers. However, livestock guarding dogs are a very valuable and versatile tool in the pastoralist's toolkit that can be used in many situations, and whose application can also be integrated with other tools, such as fencing, to create functional solutions. |
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