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4 October 2021 Two for the Price of One: Livestock Guarding Dogs Deter not only Predators but also Competitors
Carolina S. Ugarte, Tadeo Talbot-Wright, Javier A. Simonetti
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Abstract

Livestock guarding dogs reduce livestock predation by excluding carnivores and altering herbivore behavior through their presence. In Patagonia, invasive European hares compete with livestock for forage but change their behavior when exposed to native predator odors. In this experiment, we aimed to test if livestock guarding dog odor triggers fear in this herbivore and reduces hare presence in different habitats of sheep grazing lands of Chilean Patagonia, where these lagomorphs are an invasive species. The results showed that European hares reduce their visits to scented places with and without horizontal vegetation. We also discovered that this invasive species reduced foraging time when the odor was present in places with dense horizontal vegetation. These results suggested that livestock guarding dogs could also serve as a European hare deterrent and decrease competition with livestock, allowing greater production and supporting sustainable livestock farming.

© 2021 The Society for Range Management. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Carolina S. Ugarte, Tadeo Talbot-Wright, and Javier A. Simonetti "Two for the Price of One: Livestock Guarding Dogs Deter not only Predators but also Competitors," Rangeland Ecology and Management 78(1), 51-53, (4 October 2021). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rama.2021.05.004
Received: 26 August 2020; Accepted: 17 May 2021; Published: 4 October 2021
KEYWORDS
European hare
invasive species
Livestock guarding dog
Sustainable livestock production
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