Working Dogs for Conservation | Africa

Working Dogs for Conservation | Africa

I have just returned from an amazing trip to the Serengeti where I had the opportunity to document 1% for the Planet non profit partner Working Dogs for Conservation (WD4C) in action. Working Dogs for Conservation’s model is fantastic — they rescue unwanted and uncared for dogs, train them in Bozeman, MT, and then deploy them around the world for various environmental conservation projects from ecological monitoring to anti-poaching.

In the case of my recent trip to Tanzania and the Grumeti Reserve, which is located in the western region of the Serengeti, WD4C have provided four highly trained dogs to help the Grumeti Fund’s, elite, 16 man Special Operations Group (SOG) combat wildlife crime. The operative word here is combat — the Grumeti’s SOG are literally putting their lives on the line everyday to stop the threat of commercial bushmeat, ivory and rhino horn poaching. The SOG are an elite unit, consisting of the best of the best of a larger 130 man Scout Force tasked with protecting wildlife in the Grumeti Reserve.

The WD4C dogs play a critical role in helping the SOG deter and apprehend poachers. The dogs are extremely effective trackers and have been trained to smell ammunition, rhino horn, and hidden caches of ivory.

Interestingly, many of the SOG are former poachers themselves who have been converted from local communities to help stop the threat of commercial poaching, which threatens the very existence of this iconic ecosystem. It was especially gratifying to witness these “unwanted” rescue dogs being rescued and given a purpose and matched with former poachers to create a highly effective team helping to save the future of wildlife in the Serengeti. How cool is that! Unwanted dogs and former poachers working together to save an iconic ecosystem.

Together the SOG and WD4C dogs are on the frontlines of conservation efforts in the Serengeti. The threats from poachers (and from predators) is a harsh reality every time they go out on patrol.

The Grumeti Reserve territory has seen a tremendous recovery in wildlife since the land was acquired in 2002, by American philanthropist Paul Tudor Jones. Prior to Jones, the territory had been completely mismanaged and was frankly almost devoid of any wildlife due to aggressive poaching and over-zealous commercial hunting. Jones made it his personal quest to rehabilitate and restore the Grumeti concessions to their former glory establishing the non-profit Grumeti Fund to begin the mammoth task of rehabilitating the degraded area. Thanks to Jones and his generous investment as well as the hard work and dedication of those he choose to lead the Grumeti Fund, the rebound has been nothing short phenomenal. There has been a fourfold increase in elephant and wildlife population in the Grumeti Reserve despite the Africa-wide poaching pandemic.

But investment by Jones and solid leadership of the Grumeti Fund are only a part what made the rebound possible. The recovery would not have happened without the local efforts of community members who form the backbone of the SOG and Scout Force. Nor would the success of this team be possible without the amazing attributes of WD4C dogs. Together they represent the boots and paws on the ground making a real difference. In my travels with various 1% for the Planet projects I have learned that environmental conservation is only an idea until it is put into action by local communities, by people who live and exist in a threatened ecosystem need to take action for conservation to work. Without local efforts investment dollars can’t be implemented. Grumeti Fund tackles this issue in a very smart way by providing environmental educational programs for youth in the local communities  — teaching the next generation the importance of protecting their homeland for the future.

 

The trip to Tanzania was epic and I enjoyed getting to know some of the SOG team members. So let’s meet these conservation heroes…

Meet Mugoye…a former poacher turned exceptional dog handler and scout.

This is Gisonte, a tireless tracker with deep understanding and drive to protect the wildlife of his tribal lands. I gave Gisonte my BeatsPill mini speaker, which brought out his love of music & dance on our bumpy truck rides back to base. Gistonte is an easy-going, quick to smile kind of guy that everyone on the team seemed to gravitate to — he welcomed me as stranger with an open heart. 

Here is Sareta, a former diamond smuggler and poacher whose love of the dogs — can literally be felt when in his presence. Sareta is the big, strong, severe type — his eyes say it all — I can’t even imagine what he has seen in his lifetime, but for as hard as he looks — he was always gentle and kind to me. [image]

It was a surreal experience to swoop into their world for a few days to ride on the back of that truck at night under a billion unrecognizable stars, being pelted by insects that felt like stones — watching hyena slink across the bumpy dirt roading on the hunt fading into the dark vast plains of the Serengeti. To hear the soft sway of Swahili and the laughter of a tight-knit team. I will cherish the experience and appreciate my time documenting the amazing work being done by Working Dogs for Conservation and the Grumeti Fund.

Some Facts about Poaching in Africa:

The risk of extinction of one of Africa's most iconic species, the elephant, is growing, mainly because of poaching and habitat loss. The African Wildlife Foundation's estimates of the population of five African endangered big mammal species indicate that the black rhino population has dropped by 97.6% since 1960 while fewer than 900 mountain gorilla and only 2,000 Grevy zebra remain. Lion is considered to have lost 85% of its historic range due to land conversion, mainly for agriculture and settlements. Over the last century, the African elephant population has declined from 3–5 million in 1940’s to 1.3 million in the 1970’s and to less than 500,000 today. Recent reports indicate that over 30,000 African elephants are now being killed per annum.

Elephant poaching and the illicit ivory trade rank among the topmost wildlife crimes globally. The factors driving this crime include a rapid growth in the demand for ivory in Asian countries for fashion and medicinal purposes, and unemployment, widespread poverty and corruption in the supply countries like Tanzania. The illicit ivory trade is a low risk and high profit undertaking, and is one of the main reasons making wildlife crime rank fourth after drugs, arms and human trafficking. The global trade of illegal wildlife is estimated to generate between US$8 billion and US$10 billion per annum. Because the demand for ivory has skyrocketed in recent years, its price in consumer countries has increased exponentially. For example, demand in China has tripled the price of ivory in just four years from US$750/kg in 2010 to USD$2,100/kg in 2014. High prices stimulate supply and result in increased elephant poaching in the origin countries, where economic and social problems such as poverty, population growth, unemployment, insecurity and corruption are widespread.

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