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Date: April 24, 2024 Wed
Time: 7:03 pm
Time: 7:03 pm
Results for canines
1 results foundAuthor: Braun, Birgit Title: Wildlife Detector Dogs: A guideline on the training of dogs to detect wildlife in trade Summary: According to IUCN, the International Union for the Conservation of Nature, the current extinction rate is estimated to exceed the natural rate by at least 1000 times. The international community is aware of the threat of unsustainable and particularly illegal trade that can result in the extinction of species. After the loss of habitat, unsustainable collection and use is the second main factor that puts wild animal and plant species at risk of extinction. In the interest of future generations, it is an important challenge to stop the decline of threatened animals and plants species. It is estimated that trade in wild plants and animals and their derivatives is worth several billions of US dollars per year, and millions of wild plants and animals are involved in international trade every year. In 2009, the World Customs Organization (WCO) organized a global day-long Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) Operation. Through increased checks, Customs administrations seized about 4630 endangered live species as well as products. This operation demonstrates the great dimension of illegal wildlife trade, which in turn demonstrates the need for increased enforcement of wildlife trade laws and regulations. Detector dogs can perceive the smallest concentrations of odours and have a highly evolved ability to discriminate between scents. They are used to detect hidden contraband like drugs, weapons, cigarettes and cash, but are also suitable for the detection of wildlife and their derivatives. They can be used to screen checked-in or hand carried baggage, freight or on the body of smugglers. This ability enables dog handlers with their dogs to carry out quick and discreet controls. Detector dogs therefore are suitable tools in the fight against the smuggling of wildlife and their derivatives. In 1998, TRAFFIC, the wildlife trade monitoring network of WWF and IUCN , launched a report, The Feasibility of Using Canines to Detect Wildlife Contraband (Parry-Jones, R. 1998). This report was followed by a Master's thesis, Enforcement of CITES in Germany: the use of sniffer dogs to detect wildlife contraband (Felgentreu, B. 2004, in German). Both reports compiled infor-mation on existing wildlife detector dog programmes and provided recommendations for their use and implementation. Following these promising results and the demonstrated potential to use detector dogs to fight against illegal trade in wildlife the first International Expert Workshop on Wildlife Detector Dogs was held in 2006 in Bad Schandau, Germany (Felgentreu, B. 2006). This workshop was a promising start for the development and implementation of wildlife detector dog programmes in several European countries and was followed by a second Workshop organized by the General Directorate of Customs of the Czech Republic and a third Workshop organized by Corpo Forestale dello Stato, Italy. The results of these workshops demonstrated a high potential to use dogs detecting wildlife contraband in the EU and led to the independent development of wildlife detector dog programmes in several European countries. Details: Berlin: WWF Germany, 2013. 16p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed December 10, 2014 at: www.traffic.org Year: 2013 Country: International URL: www.traffic.org Shelf Number: 134313 Keywords: CaninesDogsIllegal Wildlife TradeWildlife Crime |