There’s nothing like knowing we have added support for South Africa’s anti-poaching units, and this month we’ve received numerous good news stories about the role tracker dogs are playing in protecting rhinos and other wildlife from poachers. July saw multiple results from both the Greater Kruger Park and Kwazulu Natal wildlife reserves where K9 anti-poaching units have proved to be incredibly successful additions to the human teams working to protect wildlife from poaching. Read on to find out who these fantastic canines are and how they work to bring poachers to a stop!
Conservation Canine Annie is one hound who nailed three poachers in one day in July, while a pack of off-line tracking dogs fresh off the plane from Texas, USA, have landed two successful apprehensions this month alone. Around the globe, working dogs are trained in law enforcement and their superior noses and tracking capabilities have proved to be huge assets to human teams, and now their noses are making it very difficult for poachers in South Africa to hide. Using the refined tracking skills – based on scent training – these specially trained dogs are able to follow poachers through rough terrain when physical footprints are not visible, adding an extraordinarily valuable element to human anti-poaching teams.
Conservation Canine Annie was trained at the Southern African Wildlife College and is owned by the Endangered Wildlife Trust. She is trained to either track humans or detect wildlife contraband like rhino horn and ivory as well as ammunition, and earlier this month on 13 July, she was put to work when an alert was sent out to her handler, Colin, about a suspected poacher in a Kwazulu Natal wildlife reserve. Colin arrived at the scene and had to rely on visual tracking skills to determine which human tracks to set Annie on (field rangers had been walking the same area, confusing the human scent trail for the dog), but soon enough Colin and Annie were able to set off on the poachers trail where they could see they split off away from the other human tracks. What’s more is these poachers were wearing socks over their shoes making their visual imprint very difficult to read; however, this is not a problem for Annie who could easily follow the scent of the poachers without a visual track. Colin read her body language – and she read his – until they eventually found two poachers lying low in the long grass. Success!
“Annie tracked through various terrains until I got a visual of the two poachers lying in the long grass. They were arrested and a rifle with silencer, ammunition, axe and other poaching equipment were recovered. Undoubtedly the life of a rhino was saved today because of this team’s tracking skills and the many hours spent in observation posts and patrols by the field rangers employed by the reserve to protect their rhino,” reported Colin.
This was not the end of the day for Annie, who was put to work yet again when the poachers’ getaway vehicle was discovered by the South African Police Service. One suspect was arrested, while another fled. Colin and Annie were called in to track the fleeing poacher, and this time Annie was put on the scent that was in the getaway vehicle. Soon, she knew what she was looking for and took off through the bush with Colin on her tail.
“We tracked for about 1 km through very thick bush, made contact and arrested a very tired and demoralised suspect who thought he had evaded the law. Overall a good day for Conservation Canine Annie and her team,” Colin concluded.
From the EWT team in KwaZulu Natal to the team at the Southern African Wildlife College (SAWC) in the Greater Kruger Park: Early July saw the arrival of 10 new free-running pack dogs from Texas, USA, which joined the already successful and hugely instrumental anti-poaching unit, which is pioneering the use of off-leash tracking dogs to track and apprehend poachers. The SAWC is renowned for its next-level dog training and handling team, led by Johan van Straaten, and was responsible for Canine Annie’s training in the field. The SAWC uses what they call a “four-tiered approach” to counter poaching, consisting of field rangers, a K9 unit, an aerial support unit, and community engagement, and it has led to undeniable success in the field.
What is special about the off-leash tracking dogs is they are not reliant on the direction from their human handler and can follow a track through unbelievably tough terrain on their town, reaching speeds of 40km/h!
“While on-leash tracker dogs are commonly used by counter-poaching teams, pack dogs that run off-leash are relatively new to the scene, but already proving their worth. They can track at high speeds over even the most difficult terrain; recent exercises have seen them cover 30 kilometres in two hours. Their top speeds, measured regularly over short distances, are around 40 kilometres per hour! Using aerial support to follow the dogs allows the rangers to catch up valuable time in the field,” states the SAWC in a media release.
The 10 hounds that arrived from the USA come from a long line of black and tan redbone breeds that have been trained in law enforcement. Their renowned trainer is Joe Braman who has 35 years of experience in dog training in police services. These specific dogs were trained for anti-poaching in South Africa, and after not even a week in their new home, these Texan hounds proved their expertise by successfully apprehending poachers in the Greater Kruger on 12th July. One week later on 20th July, these dogs struck again when three poachers were traced and arrested and equipment was recovered from the scene.
These undeniably jubilant successes are inspiring and uplifting, but they arise between news stories of tragic poaching incidents. In the same week of the 20th July when three poachers were apprehended and arrested, a SANParks field ranger lost his life in a shootout with poachers. He apprehended poachers with his K9 counterpart and sustain a fatal gunshot wound, which led to his death while en route the hospital. Our condolences go out to his colleagues and loved ones, and we thank him for his bravery in serving his duty.
Estimated rhino poaching statistics as of July 2018 are at around 300 rhinos killed due to poaching in South Africa this year. Although this is an optimistic 20% decrease, reports are showing a rise in the poaching of elephants, which has to reach toward the 1981 high of over 100 elephants poached.
We hope that the successful arrests and apprehensions begin to outweigh the opposite and we can start to see our wildlife making a recovery after all. The use of K9 units in anti-poaching is an undeniably useful tool that is making waves in the field of counter poaching. If you would like to show your support to the Endangered Wildlife Trust and the Southern African Wildlife College by donating to their K9 causes, please use the following links:
Southern African Wildlife College K9 Unit
