Dingoes occupy a unique ecological role as Australia's apex predator, yet face ongoing persecution through baiting, shooting, and trapping that causes significant welfare harm.
Dingoes face a dual welfare and conservation crisis. Control methods used on pastoral land — aerial baiting with 1080, shooting, trapping — cause significant animal suffering at scale. 1080 poisoning is particularly inhumane, causing a prolonged and distressing death. Trap injuries cause suffering in dingoes and non-target animals alike. Simultaneously, the ecological evidence increasingly shows that dingo suppression allows prey species to overgraze, causing broader ecosystem harm. The welfare cost of dingo control must be weighed against livestock protection — yet the scale of killing (hundreds of thousands annually by some estimates) seems disproportionate. Alternative livestock protection methods including guardian animals deserve greater investment.