Domestic Dog's Behaviour in Confrontation with Wild Boar-Utilization of Dogs as Aversive Stimulus to Wild Boar

Abstract

We conducted confrontation tests with domestic dogs and wild boars in order to determine whether the dogs have an ability to repel wild boars. Five adult dogs and six wild boars were used. One dog was a female German shepherd used by the police. The others were mongrel companion dogs and were made up of three males and one female. The wild boars, three males and three females, about 16 months old were reared for at least 14 months before the experiment. The confrontation tests were carried out three times a day at 0800-0900h, 1200-1300h, and 1600-1700h. Each dog confronted all wild boars within two days. During the confrontation test period, the dogs expressed significantly greater attention (P<0.01) and bark (P<0.05) to the wild boar than before the confrontation. Moreover, individual differences (P<0.01) were found in the frequency of the dog's barks. While just three seconds before the boar was frightened away, dogs more frequently barked (P<0.01) and turned their gaze (P<0.05) toward the boar than in other observation periods. This indicates that a dog's bark and gaze were aversive stimuli for wild boars. The tendency of barking is well known to widely vary among different breeds and individuals so it is recommended that suitable dogs are selected for repelling wild boars.