Why is hazing used and does it harm the Fraser Island dingoes ?
Hazing is a successful, non-lethal aversive technique practised by conservation agencies on Fraser Island and elsewhere in the world. It helps to discourage potentially dangerous animals (e.g. bears, wolves and baboons) from soliciting food from humans and becoming habituated in their behaviour by getting used to scrounging food from people or becoming aggressive to get at food. Hazing discourages dangerous wildlife from interacting with people and it also encourages their reliance on natural food sources. Hazing is a useful method of trying to avert habituation and ultimately works to help dingoes survive as wild animals. Currently, rangers on Fraser Island rarely use hazing—propelling a small clay pellet at the errant dingo’s hind quarters—to maximise its impact.
Part of the management strategy is to keep dingoes off the beach and away from tourist areas by means of ‘hazing’. This involves attempting to scare dingoes away by shanghai-ing them with pellets, this practice is cruel, and can only add to the dingoes’ mistrust of humans and heighten their antagonism.
