On The Scent: Meet the Dogs Protecting 200 Rhinos

Over the last few months, Ol Pejeta's canine unit have been very busy with their training, and their wildlife protection activities. This includes a recent bushmeat incident within the landscape, involving our ranger team and canine unit.

Whilst illegal, bushmeat hunting has been on the rise in some remote parts of the region, possibly due to prolonged drought conditions impacting food security. Ol Pejeta works closely with the Kenyan Wildlife Service (KWS) and local authorities to help reduce crime within local communities and ensure that wildlife and people live in harmony. Unfortunately, there has been little success in catching offenders, and more recently Ol Pejeta’s K9 unit were called to step in and assist the local community.

In April, Ol Pejeta received reports of bushmeat hunting and intrusions on a nearby farm. In response, our Anti-Poaching and K9 team were deployed to the scene. Upon arrival at the farm, the team located and confirmed that 50 snares had been placed across the farm for the purpose of ensnaring wildlife for bushmeat. One of the snares had caught an antelope, and the suspects had made away with the meat, leaving solely the head behind. Using the scent from the snares, tracker dog Stecy pursued the suspects to herder housing in a nearby cattle farm. A quick search of houses revealed bushmeat suspected to be from the snares found earlier that day. The evidence was handed over to the KWS and national police to take appropriate action.

Incidents like this highlight the value of the ranger team and eight dogs in the K9 unit, whose sense of smell and unique set of skills provide valuable support to both community and wildlife. It is with enormous thanks and gratitude to our ranger team and eight dogs for their diligence and daily sacrifice on the frontline.

Together we are a team, and it is the combined effort of our global community and supporters, and those on the ground, that enables us to continue ensuring both people and wildlife remain protected and safe. Thank you for your contribution to this effort.

All eight dogs and their 12 handlers on Ol Pejeta's K9 unit are well and thriving! We are sincerely grateful for your support in the last few months, which has enabled the team to respond to more than 100 incidents of human wildlife conflict, castle rustling, stock theft, house thefts and anti-poaching patrols.

In February, our teams were called out to the southern boundary fence line early one morning. The footprints of two suspected poachers had been identified by our fencing patrol. 

The K9 unit immediately got to work, dividing into two teams with one ensuring the conservancy was clear and the other tracking outside the fence line. After tracking for over 3km, track dog Otis found where the suspected poachers entered the conservancy, and then supported the team to do a thorough check of the Conservancy, concluding that luckily no poaching had occurred.
Meanwhile, track dog Malaika and Suga took it in turns for several kilometres at a time, to track the suspects to where they went outside our fence line. Their persistence paid off as they managed to apprehend the suspects and facilitated two arrests by the police.

This serves as a stark reminder of the very real and present poaching threat. We’re grateful for our diligent staff and hardworking K9s and handlers for their work in securing a safe space for survival.

By supporting Ol Pejeta's K9 unit, you have actively contributed to securing the Conservancy from poaching threats, incursions, and conflict. As a critical pillar of our security team, your support helps keep the K9 unit operational, ensuring regular refresher training and vet checks covering deworming, vaccinations against rabies, as well as providing the right nutrition they need to maintain a good and healthy condition. The resulting impact ensures our tracker dogs are fit, healthy and highly-trained. Thank you very much.

Thanks to your incredible support, Ol Pejeta's canine unit continues to be operational and effective. In the last four months, our canine unit has been deployed to address 31 incidents ranging from human-wildlife conflict, cattle theft, livestock raids, burglary and stealing. The impact of the canine unit also extends beyond the boundaries of the Conservancy. A small team of three dogs and their handlers were recently deployed to assist in a poaching incident at the neighboring Conservancy of Solio Ranch, where they tracked a poacher until the tarmac when they unfortunately escaped in a vehicle and the team could not pursue.

The canine team sits within the Security Unit and is critical to our anti-poaching and security measures, helping us ensure the continued protection of 210 rhinos (165 black, 43 white and 2 northern white) that call Ol Pejeta home. The Security Unit is dedicated to secure the landscape and create a safe space for survival. As a result of these efforts, 0 rhino have been poached in the last four years and 21 calves (19 black, 4 white) have been born this year - a Conservancy record! We are incredibly proud of this and want to thank you for partnering with Ol Pejeta to help us achieve this milestone.

To ensure the dogs remain highly-effective and responsive, they receive regular refresher training. With your support, the dogs and their handlers participated in a refresher training course over the summer, which covered tracking, scent handling and effective use, hygiene, health grooming and ammo searching. Alongside training, the dogs regularly undergo veterinary checks, deworming, and vaccinations against Rabies, Distemper, Hepatitis and Canine Parvovirus. It costs around US$150 per month to take care of each dog and give them the right nutrition they need to keep them happy and in good condition. Your support has enabled our team to ensure the dogs are a well-cared for and effective team, ready to be deployed 24/7.

Thank you so much for partnering with us on this project and for helping keep our K9 unit operational. The team remains committed to responding quickly and effectively to continue securing a safe space for people and wildlife in northern Kenya. 

Asante Sana!