Feral dogs pose threat to elusive snow leopards in Ladakh

Kargil, Jan 29: The rising number of feral dogs in Ladakh are posing a major threat to the wildlife particularly the elusive snow leopard.

The menace of feral dogs has been a constant and rising concern in the union territory despite various initiatives implemented and underway for last few years.

In a video that has gone viral on social media, a pack of feral dogs could be seen chasing a snow leopard at Kharfong village of Leh district. In the video the snow leopard was seen climbing to a Stupa to save itself from being attacked by the dogs. The snow leopard is a exotic creature found in the Himalayan mountains. It has been declared the official state animal of Ladakh. For the snow leopard, the mountainous region of the western and eastern Himalayas is the habitat of the big cat in India.

Apart from predation, which appears to be the major impact, feral dogs are also involved in competition for prey with wild species. Disturbance, disease transmission and hybridisation are other impacts on wildlife. “Because of their instinctive nature, dogs will still form packs, and chase animals, either for food, or for fun. Such encounters can have potentially deadly effects on wildlife, either through direct killing," a wildlife official said. In Ladakh, the presence of free-ranging dogs has increased in recent years and their population is also increasing in protected areas that are home to some of the rare wildlife species of India and central Asia.