Exploring the behavioral causal chain in free ranging dogs feeding patterns in Southern Iran

Providing food to Free Ranging Dogs (FRDs) promotes population growth and subsequently harms wildlife through increased predation. In such a situation, the behavior of the local community towards FRDs makes its management doubly difficult. FRDs are a common concern in southern Iran, including Jiroft. However, there is a limited understanding of the community's attitudes towards these animals, creating challenges in implementing effective management practices. This study presents an exploratory investigation aimed at developing a preliminary conceptual model to understand the complex social factors influencing feeding behavior towards FRDs in this region. In such a complex system it is necessary to deal with numerous effects and loops that can influence feeding behavior. Where an emotional bond exists between FRDs and those who feed them. Through a survey of local residents (n = 398) in the city of Jiroft, we explored the social factors that support the feeding of FRDs. The current empirical research has presented the interaction of the variables including previous negative experience, perceived well-being, attitude towards FRDs, emotion and perceived risk in the form of two reinforcing and balancing loops. Overall, the causal model developed showed that feeding behavior of FRDs is rooted in previous experiences, and if this experience is negative, the feeding behavior will stop, and if there is no negative experience, this behavior will continue. Therefore, the main trigger is the previous experience, which is able to build a causal model of the behavioral chain.