Painted Dog Conservation, Zimbabwe

Up until the year 2000, Zimbabwe was a popular destination for eco-tourism, creating a stakeholder interest in the conservation of native species. However, due to the worsening political situation, tourism to Zimbabwe has crashed, and conservation has suffered as a result.

One species particularly affected is the African Painted Dog. These dogs are classified as endangered by the International Conservation Union, having disappeared from much of their natural range due to ongoing conflict with man, infectious disease and habitat fragmentation. At the current time, there may be as few as 2500 Painted Dogs remaining in the wild.

The Painted Dog Conservation Project (PDC), based in Hwange National Park is successfully working with this species, covering an area home to 17% of the total wild dog population.
PDC employs 55 local people however, until now, they have not had the capacity to employ any veterinary staff.

In 2007, the project received funds to construct a veterinary clinic within the National Park. A Zimbabwean vet will be employed by the project, eventually joined by two veterinary nurses, to establish a much needed emergency unit, which will care for snared and injured dogs (and other wildlife) and conduct research, particularly on the dynamics of disease in the population.

An on-site veterinary clinic will contribute greatly to the conservation of endangered African Painted Dogs. The health of individual dogs is of utmost importance to this project, as the death of a pack leader can result in the dissolution, and sometimes death, of the whole pack.

A specialist British vet visited the project in late February 2010, to assist with the planning of the new clinic, and to provide training to the newly employed vet in wildlife medicine techniques. Thanks to generous donations and funding, we have also been able to provide some basic equipment, vaccines and medications to the project. For us to continue our involvement with this project in the future, we need your support. Please click here to make a donation to help this, and our other projects, today. Thank you.

More information

For more information about our work with the Painted Dog Conservation Project in Zimbabwe, click on the links below:

• WVI report visit February 2010
• Painted Dog Conservation Project website

Funders

With grateful thanks to the RCVS Trust for part funding this project, and to Intervet and Novartis for generous donations of vaccines and antiparasitic treatments.