INCREASING wild dog hybridisation is making traditional control methods less effective, according to national wild dog facilitator Greg Mifsud.
A national study of 3637 wild dog DNA samples found the percentage of hybrids in the wild was generally higher in areas with large human populations, but even in western Queensland the percentage of dogs with pure genetics was getting smaller.
"Around Blackall the percentage of pure dingo is around 60 percent," Mr Mifsud said.
"We're seeing significant changes because of this. Once wild dogs were highly seasonal in their mating and we could deliver control at certain times.
"This is breaking down now. People are seeing juveniles in the landscape all through the year, and two bitches in the same group having litters at different times.
"This shouldn't occur and I seriously think that's been a big issue for us."
Mr Mifsud said aiming for just one major control effort in the spring would manage the first litter leaving the den, but a second lot leaving a month later would not encounter that control.
He is urging producers and managers of wild dog programs to build control programs into regular daily or weekly property management.
"People should be building bait stations into their water runs so it's not a huge impost into what you're doing," he said.
"By that I mean, find a place where dogs are likely to go and that you're able to regularly check, and take baits out as part of your water run.
"That way you can always have something out there for a dog to come across. You might not have to bait across your whole property, and if anything, it will knock out your foxes."
He said the same idea would work for those who preferred trapping.
"Just doing something once or twice a year doesn't cut the mustard any more.
"If dogs are changing, we've got to change to respond to that."
According to an Invasive Animals CRC fact sheet, interbreeding between dogs and dingoes had progressed rapidly since domestic dogs arrived in Australia.
Mr Mifsud said the DNA study showed more interbreeding inside the barrier fence, possibly because properties were smaller and there were more chances for interbreeding to occur.
He believed too much emphasis had been placed on the alpha male pack structure and that hybridisation was breaking that down anyway.
"Maybe when there's not a lot of food around, dominance might play a role, but where you've got lots of waters and roos to eat, it's not so much of an issue," he said.
He added that the colour of a wild dog's pelt was not a very useful indicator of genetic purity.
Pure dingoes were not always the typical yellow colour most people associated them with, and hybrids could often have the typical yellow colouring.
Characteristics besides coat colour were needed to determine whether or not a wild dog was a purebred or a hybrid, which is where the DNA testing came in.
