A pack of dogs was trained to protect wildlife. Around 45 rhinos were saved from poachers in South Africa.
The dogs are ranging from bloodhounds to beagles. They have started training from the day they were born and learned how to cope with the pressure of real missions when they are 18 months old.
Sean Viljoen, who lives in Cape Town, shared several pictures of the dogs in action on social media in the Greater Kruger National Park.
The 29-year-old man owns the production company Conservation Film Company. The goal of his company is to bring cinematic storytelling to the characters and share some stories of hope.
Johan van Straaten, one of the K9 Masters at the Southern African Wildlife College said they are collecting important data for the applied learning project and shows that around 45 rhinos were saved from certain death since the dogs became operational 2 years ago.
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The free tracking dogs are a real game-changer. They can even track speeds that are much faster than a human.
Thanks to this project, African wildlife have higher chances of survival, including the rhino which has been really affected by wildlife crime. Unfortunately, over 8,000 rhinos have been lost because of poachers.
The dogs are different breeds such as Belgian Malinois, Texan Black-and-Tan Coonhounds, Foxhounds, and Blue Ticks. All of them are trained for counter-poaching initiatives which include free tracking, detection, and patrol.
These dogs are socialized from a young age and they start the training since the day they were born. At first, they learn how to follow basic obedience.
When they are 6 months old, all the dogs are put together in more formal training. Although they have the necessary skill set to work at a younger age, they can’t handle the pressure of real missions.
Dogs usually can become operational when they are 18 months old, but it depends on various factors.
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