The University of Sydney’s Faculty of Veterinary Science is conducting the Healthy Dogs Healthy Communities Research Project funded by an Australian Research Council (ARC) Linkage Grant. This project aims to investigate the impact of culturally appropriate information and training on dog health and welfare in rural and remote Indigenous communities.Animal Management in Rural and Remote Aboriginal Communities Incorporated (AMRRIC) is a project supporter and partner. AMRRIC’s role is to facilitate animal (primarily dog) health programs into the remote Indigenous communities involved in this ARC project. Bidyadanga Aboriginal Community is located on the West Australian coast, 200 kilometres south of Broome. Bidyadanga dogs are well serviced by a combination of 4 visits a year from Broome-based Nirrumbuk Aboriginal Corporation and Bidyadanga Environmental Health Worker. This program consists of mange treatment  (Cytodectin) by regularly spraying the dogs. There have been no previous veterinary visits to Bidyadanga. AMRRIC was able to engage the services of AMRRIC members,the local Broome Vets.  They were keen to continue their association with local Indigenous communities by providing a Bidyadanga dog health program. The main issue for community members in Bidyadanga was dog numbers and the prevalence of ticks. A surgery ‘suite’ was established at the Bidyadanga Sport and Recreation Centre . Nirrumbuk also provided their excellent trailer with a well-designed multi-cage dog pick up facility. They and the Bidyadanga Environmental workers collected, and returned the dogs. Environmental Health workers already widely experienced in dog handling, facilitated the veterinary team by clipping and preparing dogs for surgery.  They also played an essential role in post-operative monitoring of surgery recipients. Dr May Sabir Ali demonstrated the use of a blow dart tranquiliser and the team experimented with its use. The surgery ‘suite’ was not on a general walking path so there were few onlookers although the community was certainly encouraged to visit. Large number of dogs were given up for euthanasia in the first few days of the program. One household had more than 11 dogs. Almost a third of the dog population were euthanased. Many of these were mangey dogs and poor young dogs of 4 months of age and under. The resulting outcome is a population of approximately 100 dogs with 30% desexed. External parasites were mainly ticks. This is a seasonal problem. At least two dogs were severely anaemic. Lice and fleas were evident in only a few dogs. Remaining dogs are mostly ‘wanted’ dogs. The average number of dogs per household is below the legislated two. However with 70% of dogs not desexed this population will rapidly increase. With regular (bi-annual) access to a program such as this, the Indigenous community is empowered to take control over dog population numbers and most importantly their human and environmental health. Members can view the full report here.