Free-roaming dogs bite 5 million people a year, kill 10-15; inflict serious damage to livestock, pets

Dogs are often called "man's best friend," but not all dogs fit this description. Feral and free-roaming canines, or wild dogs, can terrorize wildlife, livestock, humans and their pets. (Feral dogs harass two bighorn sheep in a photo by Jeff Crouse Hinojosa of JJ Restoration Service)

"Wildlife Services, the federal agency responsible for predator control estimates that more than 33 million feral and free-roaming dogs run loose in the United States, biting 5 million people each year and killing about 10 to 15, usually small children," Troy Anderson writes in the High Country News, which focuses on the rural West. "In rural areas, feral and loose pet dogs often form packs that chase down and kill deer, elk, chickens, goats and even cattle." Jeff Villepique, a biologist with the California Department of Fish and Game, told Anderson most incidents go unreported. "There is no reason for me to think we know the full extent of the problem."

Such attacks are not limited to big game animals. "Many ranchers are quick to blame wolves, coyotes and grizzly bears for harassing or killing their livestock, but wildlife officials say dogs are often the culprits," Anderson writes. In 2004, dogs killed approximately 30,000 sheep nationwide, second only to coyotes who butchered more than 135,000. "Each year Wildlife Services receives hundreds of requests to trap, poison and shoot feral dogs. Still, the agency devotes most of its resources to killing wild predators. In 2006, the agency killed more than 87,000 coyotes but only 512 dogs. Hundreds more were taken to animal shelters."Wild dogs also inflict mayhem on humans and their pets and neighborhoods. A pack is suspected of nearly killing a family dog in Tell City, Ind., Stefanie Silvey reports for WIFE-TV. Residents in Aiken, S.C., notified police after sighting about five wild dogs roaming together who officials believe could carry rabies or other diseases," Joy Howe reports for WJBF-TV. Authorities in Upper Arlington, Ohio are offering a $1000 reward for the return of Curley, a feral dog who escaped while being transported from Utah to New York state, writes Bill Bush of The Columbus Dispatch. "In California’s San Gabriel and San Bernardino mountains, officials have removed 350 feral and free-roaming dogs over the past 15 years," Anderson writes. "The dogs are difficult to catch, and trapping has been sporadic at best. Recent U.S. Forest Service budget cuts will further hamper efforts to address the problem."

Wildlife Services is a division of the Animal and Plant Inspection Service of the Department of Agriculture, the parent agency of the Forest Service. It should not be confused with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which is part of the Interior Department.

Hungry bears prompt warnings for hunters, hikers from W.Va. officials; rabid bruin shot in Md.

UPDATE: A rabid bear was shot near Grantsville, Md., in the far western part of the state, on Aug. 29, Joe Holley of The Washington Post reports. (Read more)

After late-spring frosts reduced a staple of bears' summer diets, the bruins have gone looking for food in backyards and other populated spots in West Virginia, reports Tara Tuckwiller of The Charleston Gazette. With bear-hunting season beginning soon in West Virginia, and campers and hikers hitting the trails, too, the state's Division of Natural Resources is warning people to take caution to avoid bears.

Bear-alert signs greet visitors and trash cans have been moved to cages in the Monongahela National Forest, where more bears have been reported than usual, Tuckwiller writes.

“The bottom line is that people enter the natural habitat of black bears when they go into the woods in West Virginia,” Dick Hall, supervisor of game management for the DNR’s wildlife resources section, told Tuckwiller. “We can focus on removing problem bears from campgrounds if necessary, but people need to recognize how to keep themselves safe as they enjoy the wild lands of the state." (Read more)

Some tips from the DNR include keeping food in an airtight container and never storing any food in a tent, carrying special bear pepper spray (the human type is not effective on bears), slowly backing away if a bear approaches, or shouting and waving a shirt or other object to look bigger if the bear continues to draw near. For more tips, go to the DNR's Web site or to http://www.bebearaware.org/. For information about Tennessee's black bear hunting season, go here. For Virginia's, click here. Kentucky has no bear season.