| Title: | Elevated lead exposure in Australian hunting dogs during a deer hunting season |
| Author(s): | Hampton JO; Cobb ML; Toop SD; Flesch JS; Hyndman TH; |
| Address: | "Animal Welfare Science Centre, Faculty of Science, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria, 3052, Australia; Harry Butler Institute, Murdoch University, 90 South Street, Western Australia, 6150, Australia. Electronic address: jordan.hampton@unimelb.edu.au. Animal Welfare Science Centre, Faculty of Science, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria, 3052, Australia. Game Management Authority, Level 2, 535 Bourke Street, Melbourne, Victoria, 3000, Australia. Harry Butler Institute, Murdoch University, 90 South Street, Western Australia, 6150, Australia; School of Veterinary Medicine, Murdoch University, 90 South Street, Western Australia, 6150, Australia" |
| DOI: | 10.1016/j.envpol.2023.121317 |
| ISSN/ISBN: | 1873-6424 (Electronic) 0269-7491 (Linking) |
| Abstract: | "There is growing recognition of the threat posed by toxic lead-based ammunition. One group of domestic animals known to be susceptible to harmful lead exposure via this route is hunting dogs. Scent-trailing dogs ('hounds') are used to hunt introduced sambar deer (Cervus unicolor) during a prescribed eight-month (April-November) annual hunting season, during which they are fed fresh venison, in Victoria, south-eastern Australia. We used this annual season as a natural experiment to undertake longitudinal sampling of dogs for lead exposure. Blood was collected from 27 dogs owned by four different deer hunters and comprising three different breeds just prior to the start of the hound hunting season (March 2022) and in the middle of the season (August 2022), and blood lead levels (BLLs) (mug/dL) were determined via inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). Using Tobit regression, the expected BLLs across all dogs were significantly lower before the season (0.50 mug/dL, standard error [SE] = 0.32 mug/dL) than during the season (1.39 mug/dL, SE = 0.35 mug/dL) (p = 0.01). However, when the breed of dog was included in the analyses, this effect was only significant in beagles (P < 0.001), not bloodhounds (p = 0.73) or harriers (p = 0.43). For 32% of the dogs before the season, and 56% during the season, BLLs exceeded the established threshold concentration for developmental neurotoxicity in humans (1.2 mug/dL). Time since most recent venison feeding, sex of dog and owner were not associated with BLLs. The finding that BLLs more than doubled during the hunting season indicates that lead exposure is a risk in this context. These results expand the sphere of impact from environmental lead in Australia from wild animals and humans, to include some groups of domestic animals, a textbook example of a One Health issue" |
| Keywords: | Humans Animals Dogs *Lead/analysis Working Dogs Seasons Hunting *Deer Victoria Domestic animals Ecotoxicology One health Recreational hunting Wildlife management; |
| Notes: | "MedlineHampton, Jordan O Cobb, Mia L Toop, Simon D Flesch, Jason S Hyndman, Timothy H eng England 2023/02/25 Environ Pollut. 2023 Apr 15; 323:121317. doi: 10.1016/j.envpol.2023.121317. Epub 2023 Feb 22" |
