Availability of predictable food through garbage and intentional feeding linked to India’s street-dog population: Study
A study published in Nature Cities suggests that the abundance of food waste and intentional feeding are the primary drivers of India's street-dog population. The researcher argues that traditional population control methods like sterilization will remain ineffective unless these 'food subsidies' are addressed.
Why it matters
Understanding the ecological drivers of urban animal populations is essential for managing public health risks and human-wildlife conflict in rapidly urbanizing environments.
A new study on the Indian street dog states that “food subsidies” — availability of abundant, predictable food through garbage and intentional feeding — have an impact on their population in the country’s urban ecosystems.
The study, titled ‘The Indian street dog crisis and multi-species coexistence in tropical urban futures’, conducted by Nishant Kumar, a DBT/Wellcome Trust India Alliance Fellow at the National Centre for Biological Sciences (NCBS), said that abundant and predictable food through garbage and the intentional feeding provided to free-ranging dogs influences their population.
NCBS said that while India’s street-dog crisis is often framed as a problem of animal population control, Mr. Kumar’s study published in Nature Cities offers a new perspective as he argues that the driver lies in how Indian cities provide free-ranging dogs with abundant and predictable food through garbage and intentional feeding.
Get smarter about the news
Sign up free for a feed built around what you actually care about, Dive Deeper research on any story, and the full text of every article.
Create free accountAlready have an account? Sign in