Farming company Pāmu has introduced a kiwi aversion training programme on its Northland farms where kiwi are known to be living, to ensure the birds are protected from the farms' dogs.
Following a successful pilot programme on two of those farms, Mangatoa and Kapiro, the policy has been extended to
the Takou Bay Dairy Unit, Puketotara and Takakuri.
Pāmu's environment manager, Gordon Williams, said that while there could be no guarantee a dog would not attack a kiwi, regardless of the dog's breed or level of obedience, avoidance training did make a difference, and also provided an important advocacy opportunity with the dog owners.
"Kiwi are especially attractive to dogs because they have a strong, distinctive smell," Williams said.
''And kiwi find it hard to escape a persistent dog because they are of course famously non-flying birds, which are ground-dwellers.
