FARMERS & LAND OWNERS

Predator-friendly farming is a livestock management strategy that involves tolerating ecologically important predators to help restore biodiversity and ecosystem health while maintaining and improving livestock production. Contrary to popular belief, controlling predators with lethal methods such as baiting and trapping, tends to increase predation rates on livestock. The disruption of social, territorial and breeding structures leads to inexperienced hunters and unstable pack hierarchy. As a result of this, the natural population and territories of wild Dingoes decrease and they are forced to hunt the easiest source of food available to them- livestock.

Predator-friendly farming works on two main premises:
  1. The predation of livestock is influenced by environmental factors.
    The availability of quality pasture and water leads to healthier cattle who are able to defend their calves from potential attacks. It has been suggested that farmers can improve these resources by ‘resting’ pastures for part of the year to conserve biomass, helping to maintain productivity. For more vulnerable livestock like sheep, farmers have a range of protection measures available, such as livestock guardian animals, which leads to the second premise:

  2. Dingo predation actively provides benefits and protection to pasture and biodiversity.
    Dingoes play a vital role in suppressing the numbers of mesopredators and herbivores, by doing so, the pressure on native fauna and pastures are greatly reduced. With fewer predators around and better vegetation cover, the abundance and biodiversity of small native animals - inclusive of threatened species - is greatly improved.

    These benefits are passed onto farmers as the threat of foxes, feral pigs and other feral species is largely decreased along with the number of over-grazing macropods destroying pastures.

    Studies conducted on cattle rangelands in Australia suggest that where dingoes are left to their own devices, farmers have estimated profits as a possible $83,000 per 100,000 hectares of land.

    ​This is due to reduced predation on livestock and nil expenditure on wild dog control. As mentioned above, a pack left to it’s own devices will naturally hunt macropods and mesopredators, and as their stable pack expands, so too does their territories and therefore the protected land farmers may reap profitability from. ​​
where dingoes are left to their own devices, farmers have estimated profits as a possible $83,000 per 100,000 hectares of land. ​
This synergistic approach is about moving away from trying to control wildlife and towards improving protection and care for livestock. It interweaves benefits to livestock production, to native ecosystems, as well as meeting social demands for the humane treatment of wildlife.

Education, support (such as certifications), and ongoing research are important to the transition to large-scale predator-friendly farming that will benefit Australia.

If you would like more information, please see the downloadable content and links below.
  • The virtuous circle: predator-friendly farming and ecological restoration in Australia (Johnson and Wallach 2016)
predator-friendly-farming.pdf
File Size: 4071 kb
File Type: pdf
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  • Ecological and economic benefits to cattle rangelands of restoring an apex predator (Prowse et. al 2015) 
prowse_et_al-2015-journal_of_applied_ecology.pdf
File Size: 635 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File
  • Good dog! Using livestock guardian dogs to protect livestock from predators in Australia’s extensive grazing systems (Bommel and Johnson 2012)
live-stock-guardian-dogs.pdf
File Size: 431 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File
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