First Nations view dingoes as sacred and kin and do not approve of dingo killing (see here)
Dingoes are present, across Australia as pure dingoes, not hybrids, or wild or feral dogs.
Dingoes are key apex predators that, keep Australian ecosystems in balance by:
- Putting downward pressure on grazing animals-something that is vital for not only the health of ecosystems but the long term viability of rangelands or the grazing industry more generally
- Putting downward pressure on cats and foxes-something that is vital for the survival of endangered small mammals, outside predator-proof fences.
Dingoes are currently not protected. Rather, they are being killed under the National Wild Dog action program. Millions of dollars of government and industry funding is going towards killing dingoes across the Australian mainland. Dingoes are also being killed as a byproduct of large-scale 1080 baiting for fox and cat control.
That they are threatened in Victoria and are protected under the Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act as a native animal, however the Victorian government has specifically unprotected them, so that they can be killed.
Dingo killing involves considerable suffering due to the inhumane methods that are currently being used.
Photograph by Michelle J Photography