13/04/2015
Giving a bite to anti-poaching
Canine units play a key role in combating poaching. The close working relationship between man and dog creates a powerful team. Dogs provide tracking teams with the ability to effectively track down otherwise invisible poachers. Relying on smell they can chase down tracks invisible to the human eye and do it at a speed which outpaces the fleeing poacher. Experience has shown a high rate of success when canine teams are deployed.
Canine teams are however expensive to set up and require high maintenance. Skilled handlers face rigorous challenges in the bush. It calls for well-trained individuals with nerves of steel. The dogs are not your average household pets either, but highly trained working dogs. Effective training, proper care and good equipment are key elements to ensure that the team works effectively.
The South African National Parks (SANParks) Honorary Rangers works closely with the South African National Parks (SANParks) counter poaching teams and have taken up the challenge to support the canine units in the Kruger National Park and other National Parks.
One major risk when working with a dog is that the dog could get lost in the bush. It is easy for a dog and handler to get separated during a hi-speed chase through hazardous terrain. When darkness falls it is all but impossible to find a lost dog. A dog on its own stands no chance against any of the big predators lurking in the bush. A lost dog constitutes a major loss of investment and hampers the ability to do anti-poaching work.
To prevent any loss of dogs the SANParks Honorary Rangers has donated satellite tracking systems for all of the tracking dogs in Kruger National Park. Though expensive, the cost of these units do not compare to the cost of replacing a lost dog. The dog and handler each carries a GPS which is in radio communication with each other. In this way the handler can see exactly where his dog is on the screen of the GPS he has in hand. With an effective range of up to 10 kilometres it becomes much easier to follow and to find lost dogs.
Training also plays a key role to prepare and keep dogs ready for action. Again the SANParks Honorary Rangers has sponsored the necessary equipment such as training harnesses, tracking leads and bite suites. The feeding bowls and kennels for looking after the dogs are just as important to help ensure healthy and happy dogs.
The SANParks Honorary Rangers are unpaid volunteers working in support of SANParks and are dependent on public support to be able to contribute to the anti-poaching effort. We wish to thank the following people who have made these donations to the value of almost two hundred thousand rand possible: Imperial Logistics, Alyssa Carter, Save The African Rhino (USA), as well as the following SANParks Honorary Rangers regions; Johannesburg, Bankenveld, Table Mountain, Conservation Services, National Executive Committee, Virtual, KwaZulu-Natal and Highveld region.
To further support South African National Parks in our fight to save the rhino and other species from extinction you can visit www.sanparksvolunteers.org
Issued by:
South African National Parks (SANParks) Honorary Rangers