African Painted Dog

Summary

The Painted Dog Protection Initiative is a movement to advance conservation of the endangered African Painted Dog species. It was started by a group of conservationists from the Emerging Wildlife Conservation Leaders program, working with key experts and partners from the Painted Dog Research Trust, Painted Dog Conservation, and the Wildlife Conservation Network.

The painted dog, also known as the African wild dog, is predominately found in East Africa. Growing to as much as 30 inches at the shoulder and weighing only 55 to 70 pounds, the painted dog closely resembles that of a domestic dog; however, it differs in that it has only four toes on each foot instead of five, has large, rounded ears, and displays a unique patchy brown, black, white, red, and yellow coat pattern. Painted dog packs share an advanced and close-knit social structure and hierarchy that is unique in the animal kingdom, even displaying some of the altruistic behaviors known more commonly to primates and social insects. Unfortunately, the painted dog is endangered due to a number of threats including habitat loss and fragmentation, diseases spread from domestic dog populations, direct poaching, incidental death due to snare entanglement, and vehicular collisions.

The painted dog population in Zimbabwe makes up one of its last remaining strongholds. Two of the regions in Zimbabwe with the greatest potential to support a growing painted dog population are the Hwange National Park and Victoria Falls area. Despite an abundance of ecological resources, painted dogs in these vicinities have faced tremendous difficulty with continued threats from human-induced fatality resulting from snare wire entrapment and vehicle collisions.

The Painted Dog Protection Initiative (PDPI) has sought to reduce incidental mortality of dogs by collaborating with partners on the re-design and manufacturing of effective anti-snare, reflective collars, and to increase awareness of the species by expanding educational efforts in the United States. To achieve these goals, PDPI partnered with the in situ conservation groups Painted Dog Conservation (PDC) and Painted Dog Research Trust (PDRT) in Zimbabwe and the Wildlife Conservation Network (WCN) in the United States, and collaborated with the Houston Zoo and Dogs for Conservation, among others. Working with these partners, PDPI has aimed to increase international awareness and conservation support for the species by creating an educational/fundraising campaign for painted dogs through support of zoo-related events, through the establishment of a painted dog conservation website and social media presence, and by utilizing the proceeds of the zoo events and online outreach/marketing to fund the research, re-design, and implementation of enhanced anti-snare and reflective collars.

Visit http://www.painteddogprotection.org/index.php for more information on how to help “protect the pack”!