Harassment of wildlife by the pets of winter recreationists

Authors(s): T. Olliff

Publication: Effects of winter recreation on wildlife of the Greater Yellowstone Area: a literature review and assessment. Report to the Greater Yellowstone Coordinating Committee. Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming.

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Publication Date: 0000-00-00

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Abstract: Harassment of wildlife by the pets of winter recreationists is increasing. Harassment is defined as any activity of humans and their associated domestic animals that increase the physiological costs of survival or decrease the probability of successful reproduction of wild animals. As winter recreational use increases and as people continue to take pets with them on their winter trips, the problem will continue to grow. The literature suggests that the primary problem is dogs chasing deer, but dogs can chase other wildlife, and cats can kill birds and small mammals. Harassment of wildlife by pets is primarily occurring on national forest lands in the Greater Yellowstone Area (GYA) as pets are not allowed off-leash in the national parks. The extent of the problem in the GYA is unknown at this time. POTENTIAL PROBLEMS WITH PET HARASSMENT OF WILDLIFE Pets both chase and kill wildlife (George 1974, Lowry and McArthur 1978). In a 1958 study, mule deer in Missouri were chased from their home ranges by dogs, including one chase that lasted 3.25 miles (Progulske and Baskett 1958). This study also stated that dogs were a negligible cause of direct mortality of deer under the conditions of the study. Bowers (1953), however, found that free-running dogs killed more deer than legal hunters during a two-month winter period in Virginia. In Yellowstone National Park in the summer of 1989, a domestic dog chased and caught a mule deer buck and tore off the deer?s lower mandible. Park rangers subsequently destroyed the deer. Being chased by a domesticated pet can disrupt a wild animal?s energetic balance. Geist (1971) stated that running increases an ungulate?s need for food and that these animals can become stressed to the point that they require more energy than they are able to take in. Consequently, the animals must use body reserves. Pregnant animals suffer higher stress levels, causing some animals to abort. A controlled study in Virginia (Gavitt 1973) used dogs to intentionally chase deer. The study found no significant differences in fawns per doe survival rates between deer that were chased and deer that were not chased. The study also found no changes in home range and that no healthy deer were caught by dogs. Even if a direct chase does not occur, domestic pets can increase stress on wildlife. MacArthur et al. (1982) found that the greatest increase in bighorn sheep heart rates occurred when the sheep were approached by humans with a dog. The literature suggests that deer are the primary target of harassment by pets and that dogs are the primary problem. But, cats have been implicated in killing a snowshoe hare (Doucet 1973) as well as birds and small mammals. It is possible for domestic pets to transmit diseases to wildlife. Canine distemper, a severe and highly contagious virus, can be transmitted to both canids and mustelids. Transmission is primarily by aerosol or by direct contact with infected individuals. Mortality rates from canine distemper vary between species and range from 20?100 percent (Wyoming Game and Fish Department 1982). Yellowstone National Park has had one wolf and one pine marten mortalities from canine distemper (Douglas Smith, personal communication). Parvovirus is also a disease concern. In Isle Royale National Park, 25 wolves died in two years from a parvovirus epidemic that was most likely introduced from a domestic dog (Jack Oelfke, personal communication). Transmission is only a problem in dogs that have not been properly vaccinated. MANAGEMENT RECOMMENDATIONS Visitor education has the most promise for mitigating this potential problem. Informing people of the potential problem and asking them to leash pets in critical deer winter range could reduce chasing of wildlife. Direct restrictions on pets in critical deer winter range could be applied if educational efforts are not effective. LITERATURE CITED Bowers, R. R. 1953. The free-running dog menace. Virginia Wildlife 14(10):5?7. Doucet, G. T. 1973. House cat as predator of snowshoe hare. Journal of Wildlife Management 37(4):591. Gavitt, J. D. 1973. Disturbance effect of freerunning dogs on deer reproduction. Thesis, Virgina Polytechnical Institute and State University, Blacksburg, Virginia, USA. Geist, V. 1971. Is big game harassment harmful? Oil Week June 14:12?13. George, V. 1974. Domestic cats as predators and factors in winter shortages of raptor prey. Wilson Bulletin 86:384?396. Lowry, D. A., and K. L. McArthur. 1978. Domestic dogs as predators on deer. Wildlife Society Bulletin 6:38?39. MacArthur, R. A., V. Geist, and R. H. Johnson. 1982. Cardiac and behavioral responses of mountain sheep to human disturbance. Journal of Wildlife Management 46:351? 358. Progulske, D. R., and T. S. Baskett. 1958. Mobility of deer. Journal of Wildlife Management 22(2):184?192. Wyoming Game and Fish Department. 1982. Diseases of wildlife in Wyoming, Second edition. Wyoming Game and Fish Department, Cheyenne, Wyoming, USA. PREPARED BY: Tom Olliff, Management Biologist, National Park Service, Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming, USA.

Keywords: animal, mammal, wildlife, human activity, mortality, population, breeding, deer, Cervidae, ungulate, behavior, sheep, bighorn sheep, Ovis canadensis, disease, human activity, management, bibliography, Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, Bridger-Teton National Forest, Targhee National Fores, population, canine, feline, Canidae, Felidae, predation