Download Cats and Dogs a win win partnership

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CATS AND DOGS: A WIN-WIN PARTNERSHIP FOR CONSERVATION IN SOUTH AFRICA.
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It’s an age old story: humans and predators just do not merge well in areas where livestock farming
is done, either on a commercial or subsistence basis. Farmers are constantly up in arms about the
no-good predators which are preying on their lambs, goats and cattle. This is the same story
conservationists are faced with no matter which part of the globe they find themselves in.
Farming in Africa carries the inherent risk of stock loss to the myriad predators that roam the terrain.
Most of the wildlife on the continent is not confined to protected areas and National Parks. Here
large carnivores such as leopard, cheetah, African Wild Dogs, brown and spotted hyena and lions still
persist. This fact is used very successfully by realtors to sell the grand idea of an African farm to
livestock and game farmers. However, once farmers realise that their livestock is threatened by
those same carnivores that led to their purchasing the land, their love for these charismatic species
quickly diminishes and is replaced by anger at the resulting financial losses.
During the past few years various methods have been used by ranchers to mitigate carnivore conflict
on livestock and game farms in South Africa. These methods include capture, snaring, shooting,
poisoning and relocation of the carnivores. All of these have proven to offer only temporary relief
to the predation levels on the farms as new carnivores simply migrate into the newly vacant
territories.
The Endangered Wildlife Trust (EWT) has been dealing with carnivore conflict and farmers for the
past 30 years and has learned valuable lessons in the arena of preventing human-wildlife conflict.
The EWT believes that prevention is better than cure and the solution that evolved from this
realisation was the EWT’s Livestock Guarding Dog Project (LGD) which deploys livestock guarding
dogs such as the indigenous Maluti (Lesotho Highland dogs) and the Turkish Anatolian Shepherd
onto farms in order to prevent loss of stock. The EWT enters into a 12-month partnership
agreement with the farmer that ensures the farmer’s compliance with the advice and assistance
supplied by the EWT’s LGD Project staff and the health and wellbeing of the livestock guarding dog.
This means that the canines are raised and integrated within the livestock herds according to proven
protocols, which guarantees the success of the project.
Puppies from these breeds are taken to the farm and placed into a sheep, goat or cattle herd from a
young age where they interact and bond directly with the livestock. This introduction allows the
herd to accept the puppy as one of their own and for the puppy, in turn, to grow up as a member of
the flock. As the puppies grow up they begin to fulfil their duty of protecting the herd against
Physical Address: Building K2, Ardeer Road, Pinelands Office Park,
Modderfontein 1609, Gauteng, South Africa
Postal Address: Private Bag X 11, Modderfontein 1645, Gauteng, South Africa
Tel: +27 (0) 11 372 3600 Fax: +27 (0) 11 608 4682 E-mail: [email protected] Web: www.ewt.org.za
The Endangered Wildlife Trust is a non-profit, public benefit organisation dedicated to conserving
species and ecosystems in southern Africa to the benefit of all people.
NPO Number: 015-502, PBO number: 930 001 777, Member of IUCN - The International Union for Conservation of Nature
The Endangered Wildlife Trust is US 501(c)(3) compliant under US IRS Registration number: EMP98-0586801.
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predator attacks by warning of predators in the vicinity and herding the animals away from the
threat.
These imposing canines move and live with the grazing livestock as they traverse the farm. The dog
is placed as a deterrent and guardian and not an attack dog. The majority of predators, when faced
with a worthy adversary, will not hesitate to back down and leave and this is the livestock guarding
dog’s key strength. Through pure size, protectiveness of its livestock and intimidation, he is able to
passively defend his herd from being the next meal.
The LGD Project has been extremely successful in the Limpopo and Mpumalanga provinces over the
past 6 years. 110 Dogs have been placed and loss reduction has dwindled from over R 4,2 million to
approximately R 140 000. This has increased the tolerance levels of farmers towards carnivores,
thus expanding the areas where these carnivores can safely roam. For further information on the
Livestock Guarding Dog Project please contact Deon Cilliers of the EWT’s Wildlife Conflict Mitigation
Programme at [email protected]
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Contact:
Deon Cilliers
Senior Field Officer
Wildlife Conflict Mitigation Programme
Endangered Wildlife Trust
Tel: +27 82 8531068
[email protected]
and
Nomonde Mxhalisa
Communications Manager
Endangered Wildlife Trust
Tel: +27 11 372 3600
[email protected]
Physical Address: Building K2, Ardeer Road, Pinelands Office Park,
Modderfontein 1609, Gauteng, South Africa
Postal Address: Private Bag X 11, Modderfontein 1645, Gauteng, South Africa
Tel: +27 (0) 11 372 3600 Fax: +27 (0) 11 608 4682 E-mail: [email protected] Web: www.ewt.org.za
The Endangered Wildlife Trust is a non-profit, public benefit organisation dedicated to conserving
species and ecosystems in southern Africa to the benefit of all people.
NPO Number: 015-502, PBO number: 930 001 777, Member of IUCN - The International Union for Conservation of Nature
The Endangered Wildlife Trust is US 501(c)(3) compliant under US IRS Registration number: EMP98-0586801.