The health of working dogs in conservation in Africa.

ABSTRACT:

Introduction

Dogs are increasingly being employed for conservation purposes worldwide. In Africa, they work in challenging environments with unique health risks which have not been investigated until now.

Methods

To understand the health challenges faced by the dogs, semi-structured interviews were conducted with participants from 14 organisations that used working dogs in their conservation programmes. The data was qualitatively analysed by thematic analysis.

Results

Five themes were generated. Three affective themes influenced how participants responded to the challenges associated with having a successful conservation dog programme. A strong handler-dog attachment, proficient handler training, and the acknowledgement of the challenging environment were pivotal to m

SUBMITTER: Earnshaw N 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10390733 | biostudies-literature | 2023

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature