Sarcoptic-mange detector dogs used to identify infected animals during outbreaks in wildlife

• Main Authors: Alasaad Samer, Permunian Roberto, Gakuya Francis, Mutinda Matthew, Soriguer Ramón C, Rossi Luca
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: BMC 2012-07-01
• Series: BMC Veterinary Research
• Subjects: <it>Canis lupus</it> var. <it>familiaris</it>; <it>Sarcoptes scabiei</it>; <it>Rupicapra pyrenaica</it>; Forensic science; Disease surveillance; Animal conservation
• Online Access: http://www.biomedcentral.com/1746-6148/8/110

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>One of the main aims of forensic investigation is the detection and location of people and substances of interest, such as missing people and illegal drugs. Dogs (<it>Canis lupus</it> var. <it>familiaris</it>) have had an important role in legal and forensic investigations for decades; nonetheless canines’ keen sense of smell has never been utilized in either the surveillance or control of wildlife diseases. The rapid removal and treatment of infected carcasses and/or sick animals is a key task in the management of infectious diseases, but it is usually difficult or impractical to carry out in the wild.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>In this paper we report on a study running over a period of 15 years, in which - for the first time to our knowledge - two disease-detector dogs were trained to follow the scent of <it>Sarcoptes</it>-infected animals and to find carcasses, even under the snow, and apparently no false positives were detected in fieldwork. Sarcoptic mange-detector dogs were used to collect the carcasses of 292 mangy wild animals and to identify, separate from their herd, and capture 63 mange-infected wild animals in the Italian Alps.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Properly trained disease-detector dogs are an efficient and straightforward tool for surveillance and control of sarcoptic mange in affected wild animal populations.</p>