title: Who Let the Dogs Out? Communicating First Nations Perspectives on a Canine Veterinary Intervention Through Digital Storytelling.
abstract: Dog-related human injuries affect public safety and animal welfare, and occur more frequently in rural, remote, and Indigenous communities than in urban centres in Canada. Little work has been done to identify the perspectives of those people most heavily affected by this issue or to report successful dog management programs. This project was undertaken by veterinarians and public health workers with the goal of documenting First Nations perspectives on dogs, and educating other rural health workers about introducing animal management services to Indigenous communities. We recruited 10-14 residents and healthcare workers from three First Nations to take dog-related photos in their communities and participate in group interviews during the summer of 2014. Audiovisual data were synthesised into four digital stories exploring the following aspects of participant relationships with community dogs: (1) Spay/neuter clinics; (2) Role of the dog (past and present); (3) Human-animal bond; and (4) Healthy dogs as a part of healthy communities. These videos document changes in dog husbandry behaviour, new acceptance of spay/neuter, three-way knowledge transfer between residents, researchers, and policy makers, and an overall desire to sustain the positive outcomes of the pilot dog management project. This work highlights cultural beliefs and success strategies that might guide other programs providing veterinary services in First Nations communities.
authors: Department of Veterinary Microbiology, University of Saskatchewan, 52 Campus Drive, Saskatoon, S7H 5B4, SK, Canada. jschurer@gmail.com.
authors: Janna M
authors: JM
authors: Schurer
authors: Department of Veterinary Microbiology, University of Saskatchewan, 52 Campus Drive, Saskatoon, S7H 5B4, SK, Canada.
authors: Christina
authors: C
authors: McKenzie
authors: Battle River Treaty 6 Health Centre, North Battleford, Canada.
authors: Crystal
authors: C
authors: Okemow
authors: School of Environment and Sustainability, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Canada.
authors: Arcadio
authors: A
authors: Viveros-Guzmán
authors: Battle River Treaty 6 Health Centre, North Battleford, Canada.
authors: Heather
authors: H
authors: Beatch
authors: Department of Veterinary Microbiology, University of Saskatchewan, 52 Campus Drive, Saskatoon, S7H 5B4, SK, Canada.
authors: Emily J
authors: EJ
authors: Jenkins
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000818:Animals; D001733:Bites and Stings / Q000517:prevention & control*; D002170:Canada; D018562:Disease Transmission, Infectious / Q000517:prevention & control*; D004283:Dog Diseases / Q000517:prevention & control* / Q000635:transmission; D004285:Dogs; D005260:Female; D006293:Health Promotion / Q000379:methods*; D006303:Health Services, Indigenous; D006801:Humans; D007198:Indians, North American / Q000193:education*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D033262:Narration; D015980:Public Health Practice; D012424:Rural Population / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Indigenous; digital storytelling; dogs; public health; rural