British-trained dog follows poacher 2.8 miles straight to his front door after killing warthog in Zimbabwe
When it comes to good dogs, this girl might be the very best.
Shinga, a Belgian Malinois bred and trained in Britain, followed a poacher 4.5km to his own front door after an illegal killing of warthogs in Zimbabwe.
The four-year-old is a specialized conservation dog who was deployed to Africa in the fight against wildlife crime and poaching.
She was trained by ‘Dogs 4 Wildlife’ in Carmarthenshire, South Wales, before being sent to The Imire Rhino and Wildlife Conservancy.
Last week, her K9 unit received a radio call reporting poachers spotted near the Imire border, accompanied by a pack of hunting dogs.
The team set out immediately, but the poachers had by then captured and killed a warthog before fleeing back to the local community.
Shinga was deployed and, remarkably, was able to chase a poacher for about 2.8 miles, all the way back to their home.
There they were found together with the dead warthog and arrested.
When it comes to good dogs, this girl might be the very best. Shinga, a Belgian Malinois bred and trained in Britain, tracked a poacher 2.8 miles from his own front door after an illegal killing of warthogs in Zimbabwe
Shinga was able to follow a poacher for about 2.8 miles, all the way back to their home. There they were found together with the dead warthog and arrested
The four-year-old is a specialist conservation dog who was deployed to Africa in the fight against wildlife crime and poaching
Darren Priddle, founder and director of Dogs 4 Wildlife, said: ‘The warthog poaching incident really shows why collaboration, partnership, teamwork and dedication are the cornerstones of effective long-term conservation efforts and why our specialist conservation dogs are so important in the ongoing fight against wildlife crime.
“Shinga and the entire unit did a phenomenal job in apprehending the poacher and we are extremely proud of them all.”
Jacqui Law, co-founder and director of the non-profit organisation, added: ‘Thanks to the dedication of Imire’s teams on the ground, this incident had a good outcome and the poacher was apprehended, but this is just one of many heart attacks . serious incidents of snare poaching occurring throughout Africa.
‘Poaching with snares makes no distinction as to which species of animals it injures or kills. This is a torturous method of capturing wild animals for bushmeat.”
Last year, Dan, another Dogs 4 Wildlife protege, rescued an 18-month-old white rhino calf from a poaching incident in South Africa.
The calf, named Viola, had become entangled while her mother was nearby. Project Rhino’s anti-poaching and K9 unit, along with Dan, spotted the rhino in distress and were able to rescue her.
A total of fifteen operational dogs have been deployed across four southern African countries in an effort to tackle illegal animal hunting and poaching.
The dogs have helped reduce poaching by 75 percent in some areas.