Archive for the ‘Africa’ Category

Aug
27

An update from the African Wild Dog rehabilitation center at Painted Dog Conservation in Zimbabwe

Posted by Renee in Africa,Carnivores,Endangered Species,Painted Dog,community-based conservation

Here is another update from Xmas Mpofu, head keeper, at Painted Dog Conservation in Zimbabwe. -

“We have received 2 puppies from low veld and are now settled into our Rehab Facility. The 2 were dug out of their den following a rabies out break in that area. The pack members are now dead and the 2 pups are the only survivors. The 2 puppies currently seem to be fit and strong and will be released back into the wild with some of our other Rehab dogs.”

Wild Painted dogs in the enclosure at PDC's rehab center

This is another example of why it is imperative to have a Painted dog rehabilitation center at PDC.  These pups wouldn’t stand a chance in the wild without the rest of the pack.  The rehabilitation center will give them the opportunity to integrate into a new pack and gain the strength they will need to survive in the wild. 

Map of enclosures and PDC's facilities

 

Chute allowing dogs to move from one enclosure to another

The rehabilitation facility itself is very impressive.  There is a series of 4 enclosures – the largest is 70

Powerful electric fence around perimeter of enclosure

 acres.  All of the enclosures have shift doors and chutes connecting them to one another for easy non-intrusive movement between pens.   There are 4 smaller day pens that allow for closer observation, if needed.  The enclosures all have a very powerful electric fence around the perimeter.  Surprisingly, the strength of this fence is more for keeping animals from the outside out!  The saying “the grass is always greener” applies here.  They have had lions, leopards, other Painted dogs, and elephants all challenging the fence line from the outside, and occasionally the unwanted visitors have found their way in.  Much of Xmas’ day is spent maintaining the perimeter fence line.  

Stay tuned for more of the exciting adventures from PDC.

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Aug
26

Impressive news from Painted Dog Conservation’s childern’s Bush Camp in Zimbabwe

Posted by Renee in Africa,Endangered Species,Painted Dog,community-based conservation

Bush Camp kids

Here is an exciting message from Painted Dog Conservation’s children’s Bush Camp in Zimbabwe. This is an example of the country’s unwavering support for this amazing community-based conservation program.   

“Painted Dog Conservation has been awarded a certificate of recognition for the sterling contribution in conservation education to the Matabeleland North region, the only organisation in the district of Hwange to receive this award. Thank you to everyone who has made this contribution a success.”    Wilton Nsimango, PDC

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Aug
18

Introducing Dought Nkomo from Painted Dog Conservation in Zimbabwe

Posted by Renee in Africa,Carnivores,Endangered Species,Painted Dog,community-based conservation

Dought and I at PDC

While working at Painted Dog Conservation in Zimbabwe I was very fortunate to establish many wonderful friendships.  The local people are warm and inviting and I always feel very at home with them.  Dought Nkomo is the head guide at PDC’s children’s bush camp.  He approached me to introduce himself after he watched me dance and make a fool of my self in my attempt to make the bush camp children laugh.  After a bit of conversation we figured out that we were the same age.  I think this was shocking to him after watching my childish antics with the children, but none the less – or maybe because of this –we became good friends. 

Dought grew up in a rural village surrounding Hwange national park.  On my last visit to Zimbabwe he brought me to see his village and meet his wife, mother, cousins, brother, and young son, Adrian.  I was fascinated to see where he and his family lived.

Teaching bush camp kids

Dought is a very proud and dedicated PDC employee; he also heads up the maintenance/building team when he is not at the bush camp. The bush camp guides are Hwange National Park employees that have been trained to be teachers. PDC offers teaching courses for guides, who are often out of work due to the decline in tourism, so they can work at the bush camp. Traditional teachers in Zimbabwe have strict relationships with students. PDC’s director, Dr. Greg Rasmussen, wanted to create a learning environment where the kids would feel very open and free.  He felt that park guides had unique knowledge and could be trained to teach children.  Their relationship to the kids is more like that of a camp counselor. Dought says that he loves what he does because he gets to see kids come out of their shell during the camp. 

Kids recognize him where ever he goes. When we went into a village one day, kids seemed to come from everywhere, yelling “bush camp, bush camp!”  He’s a celebrity, and in my opinion, the best kind!  I am very excited announce Dought has agreed to send me updates from the project that I will post on our blog, the first of which is below.

Dought at his village with his family

Well I have completed another 3 months of Bush camps and a lot of them were back to back because of interest that have been shown by schools outside Hwange.We had a school coming from Zambia and another from Victoria Falls and both have promised to come back next year. We had 11 camps compared to 6 every 3 months.

When there is a bush camp my day starts at 4:30am when I take a bath then if I am the one doing the staff run I go and pick up the housekeeping staff. At 6:30 the kids have breakfast, then lessons start at 7:00am.I take the kids through various conservation activities up to 8pm but with a number of breaks in between for 4 days. During the the weeks when there are no bush camps i am in the maintenance department where i am involved with supervision of the construction team. Currently we are building Dr Greg Rassmussen’s house and the other team is digging a big hole where we want to build an underground water storage tank for storin rain water that will come down the gutters on the visitor centre roof. Once complete a pump will be fitted on the tank to supply water to the sprinklers around for use in case of fire. I am also doing maintenance of the Painted dog Conservation facilities, like the childrens bush camp ,the raised walkway and the Visitors centre and also the furniture.

I enjoy being in Africa especially with all the wildlife around the community i live in.here in Hwange we have over 100 animal species and with the conservation education the community is recieving is now making them aware that they can co-exist with wildlife.People used to think that wildlife is “game meat”but now they are begining to know about the role each species play in the naural community. The kids enjoy a lot when i take them out into Hwange national park where they get to see wildlife so close to them and yet in the villages animals run away at the sight of humans.It is usually the first time for most of them to see some of these animals and the excitement they have is amazing .I am happy about the oppotunity i am giving to the kids on behalf of Painted dog conservation.

In the village all is progressing well for me and my family, next week schools close and Adrian is going to the village for the whole month.He is going to be looking after his goats and cattle.

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Aug
17

The Childern are saving the Painted dog in Zimbabwe

Posted by Renee in Africa,Carnivores,Endangered Species,Field Research,Painted Dog,community-based conservation

Bush camp kids at water hole

 

Painted Dog Conservation in Zimbabwe has double the population of the endangered Painted dog in the past ten years by its community- based conservation efforts.  It attributes its continued success to a program they offer to grade six level students from the local villages called the Bush Camp.  This is a 4-day long environmental education experience.  The local communities are so supportive and excited about this program for the kids that they have made it a mandatory requirement for schools in the area.  The program is free to the community, as PDC gets all of their funding from donations outside of the country.  Every year one thousand children come through the Children’s Bush Camp – for less than $15 a day.  They stay a week – and for the first time, they see the dogs and wildlife that live just miles from their villages. It’s like Disneyland to them – it’s the highlight of their lives. 

Bush camp work book

So how did this wonderful program get started?  When Dr. Greg Rasmussen first set out to save the Painted dog, he knew that it would only be possible with the support of the local people.  So, he spent 10 years before he even started PDC on a journey to find what the local rural natives really wanted and needed.  He spent time with the community to listen and inquire; and the answer that rang clear was to make their children happy. Throughout these years he also visited local schools to talk to the kids and teachers about the dogs (usually in a dog costume). He saw the youth were deprived of any wildlife education, not from a lack of interest, but more from a lack of inspiration.  Greg was finding it very difficult to connect the kids to wildlife when they had never seen it before.  The kids from rural villages no longer see wildlife, as the villages are being pushed farther away from the park.  Most of the rural village kids have never even seen an elephant or giraffe never mind a Painted dog. 

Being a big kid himself, this task made Greg very happy!  He built small round huts immersed in the bush and all of the kids sleep in their own beds with mosquito nets.  Many of the kids have never slept on beds much less in their own bed, and they definitely have never had mosquito nets.  The children are overjoyed by the electricity (the rural villages do not have electricity), the lights flick on and off all night for their first night.  The kids are very respectful and well behaved; they are immensely grateful for this experience.

Bush camp kids dress up like Painted dogs for a play

The kids learn about the whole eco-system with a special emphasis on the plight of the Painted dog.  They are put in groups named after the various Painted dog packs that are in the area when they arrive and play games that imitate the Painted dog’s behavior and social dynamic.  The lessons are in both the local dialect, Ndebele, and English and the kids get an opportunity to see and work with computers for the first time.

In the middle of the camp there is a meeting area on stilts, used for the kid’s plays and dances.  Each night they act out, dance and sing what they have learned during the day.  The stilted stage is connected to the elevated walkway over the 80-acre dog enclosure. The kids are led out onto the walkway to get an unobstructed view from above of the Painted dogs in PDC’s rehabilitation center.    

 

When I am at PDC, being at the bush camp with those amazing children is definitely the highlight!  When I get the pleasure of going into the park with the kids for their first game drive they always break out into joyous song on the way home.  This experience brings tears to my eyes.  They are beautiful singers and their gratitude and joy is expressed in their singing.  

Kids with me in front of Bush camp huts

When Greg is asked what of PDC’s achievements to date he is most proud of, he answers “Our children’s bush camp. Ideally I would like to see them set up adjacent to many of the world’s national parks. It happens in most areas – the local communities never get to see their wildlife often because the areas are made inaccessible as they are designated for tourist or hunting purposes. Consequently it is no surprise that communities see no value in wildlife and consequently make no effort to conserve it.”

The success of this program is tangible; there have been children that have assisted in the arrest of poachers after being at the bush camp.  The local communities love it so much that they are now asking for an adult camp.

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Aug
06

Procrasti-Nation and Cell Phone Recycling

Posted by Peter in Africa,Endangered Species,Gorilla,What You Can Do

I will do what I have to do as long as I do not have to do anything until it is necessary for me to do so.

That about sums it up for most of us as we set aside trivial tasks throughout the week, month, year, decade…Pull the weeds – maybe next week. Touch up the paint on the back door- nobody can see it anyway. Insulate the attic – it’s too hot to work up there 9 months out of the year, I’ll wait until it is cold again. What are all these broken cell phones doing in the junk drawer? They are not really in the way, I’ll throw them out later.

I had a friend bring me a bag of 6 phones and chargers last week. They were in a box in his garage for 2 years. 6 phones? There are 2 people in his family! We cannot keep up with the cell phone revolution and our landfills should not have to either. To make matters worse, every phone not recovered and recycled is equal to minerals and resources coming directly out of the African Congo. Everyobe says – “What can we do?”. Here is what you can do and it really makes a difference.

Bring your cell phone to the zoo for recycling and help save wildlfe, and people, in Africa. Civil wars and rebel groups thrive on the illegal trade in the resources which make our phones,  laptops, digital cameras, and video games run. The mineral called tantalum or coltan and it acts as a capacitor in your phone. Armed groups in eastern Congo that control minerals, mines and trading routes generate an estimated $180 million each year by trading four main minerals: tin, tantalum, tungsten, and gold.

And with these groups comes habitat destruction, illegal poaching and bushmeat, as well as the loss of human life due to the civil unrest. Something as simple as a cell phone has created a power struggle over resources. By recycling that resource so that it can be refurbished and re-used, we cut down on the amount of product imported, and hopefully slow down the trade. Contact conservation@houstonzoo.org for more information.

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Aug
04

Thirsty Dogs Help Wildlife Conservation

Posted by Peter in Africa,Animal Origins & Fun Facts,Carnivores,Endangered Species,Painted Dog,What You Can Do,community-based conservation

New** Now available in the zoo gift shop!  Keep your dog cool, and let him support conservation of his or her distant wild cousins in Africa, by purchasing our new dog water bottles. These unique water bottles are specialized for a domestic dog’s tongue, with an easy to drink roller ball, and are available in green or red.  All proceeds from the purchase of this product go to saving the second most endangered carnivore in Africa, the Painted Dog (aka African wild dog).  The bottle has the Painted Dog Conservation (PDC) logo on it.  PDC is located in Hwange National park, Zimbabwe, Africa and is committed to protecting the Painted Dog in partnership with the local people.

Painted Dogs, also known as African Wild Dogs, are unique to Africa and they are among this continent’s most endangered species. It is estimated that a mere 3,000  – 5,000 remain. The Painted Dog Conservation program in Zimbabwe focuses on community outreach, education and development,  Painted Dog rehabiliation and re-introduction.

Contact conservation@houstonzoo.org for more information on where to purchase.

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Aug
02

Introducing Xmas Impofu from the Painted Dog Conservation Project in Zimbabwe

Posted by Renee in Africa,Carnivores,Painted Dog,community-based conservation

In 2006 I was asked to come out to the Painted Dog Conservation project in Zimbabwe.   The project’s director, Dr. Greg Rasmussen, asked me to share my knowledge of Painted Dogs (AKA African Wild Dogs)  with his dedicated staff.   I had been work with a large number of dogs in captivity for over 7 years, so he felt that I could help his newly formed animal care team.  I was honoured and overjoyed to be invited, but I had no idea of what to expect.  

Me and Xmas Impofu, head keeper at PDC's rehabilitation facility in Zimbabwe.

Painted Dog Conservation is a community-based conservation project that exists to preserve and protect the second most endangered carnivore in Africa, the Painted Dog in Zimbabwe.  Over 70 locals from rural communities are employed by the project and work in its various departments.  At PDC’s rehabilitation center there is a staff that cares for injured and orphaned dogs until they are fit to be re-released back into the wild.  Xmas Mpofu is the lead keeper at the rehab center.  He is from a local rural village, and has grown up near the park.   I was assigned to work along side Xmas to implement a daily health and behavior observation record system(this includes details about food consumption, feces consistency, injuries, medicating, and interactions with other dogs at the rehab center), enrichment schedule, diet schedule, and behavioural training methods for the rehab center.

He was an absolute dream to work with.  He taught me a lot about the dogs, but most importantly he introduced me to his people’s traditions and culture.  I loved hearing about how his people historically viewed wildlife and the change in thinking that has gone on directly due to PDC’s efforts.  The population of Painted Dogs has doubled in the past 10 years thanks to this project. 

Xmas teaching kids from a local village about the dogs

I am introducing you to my friend Xmas because he has agreed to send me updates from PDC in Zimbabwe about the rehabilitation center and it’s residents.  I will be posting them on the conservation blog so that you can get to know this amazing community-based conservation project from words of a local.

So without further ado here is Xmas Impofu’s first installment reporting from PDC in Hwange National Park, Zimbabwe.   

“We have four of our permanent Rehab dogs that won’t be released back into the wild. The 4 dogs are currently being used for educational programs and to show visitors from all over the world when they visit our place. There are quite a few reasons why the 4 dogs are not released back into the wild; the first …2 dogs, namely, John the male and Angela the female were in bad condition.

The 3rd one, Zanga which is a Ndebele name for crazy or nasty, is the dog from South Africa that was brought in with 15 other dogs and is the only survivor, the rest died of snares and some by road accident.The 4th one is called Roman for Roman biscuits and is a female who was also brought in the Rehab Facility with other 2 dogs known as Marie and Lobels all named after biscuits. The 2 died after they have been released, then Roman is the survivor.”

Painted dogs in Hwange National Park

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Jul
29

Gorilla Country

Posted by Peter in Africa,Animal Origins & Fun Facts,Elephant,Endangered Species,Field Research,Gorilla,community-based conservation

In the Republic of Congo, the Houston Zoo is partnering with the Mbeli Bai Gorilla Program in the Nouabalé-Ndoki National Park. Mbeli Bai is the only long-term demographic study on western gorillas which uses direct observations to provide important baseline information on the social organization, demography and behavior of an intact population of gorillas. Detailed studies are also undertaken on the activity of other large mammal species using the bai, such as forest elephants, sitatungas, forest buffaloes as well as otters and many other species. 

Why should we care to protect wildlife in places so far away? Watch the video of wildlife living in and around Mbeli Bai in the Republic of Congo.

Did you watch the video? All 5 minutes? We would like to hear your thoughts on this 5 minute glimpse into a very special place.

If you would like to help support the Mbeli Bai Gorilla Program and the Houston Zoo’s efforts to save threatened wildlife in Africa, please click on the button below.

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Jul
28

Rwanda Calling? Volunteers Wanted!

Posted by Peter in Africa,Endangered Species,Featured,Gorilla,Travel,What You Can Do,community-based conservation

Looking for a new experience working with children at the base of a volcano where half the world’s Mountain Gorillas remain? If so, you can volunteer with Art of Conservation in Rwanda. 

Art of Conservation, Inc. educates Rwandans about conservation and the importance of maintaining a healthy environment for both people and animals while instilling in them an understanding and respect for themselves, their peers, and the natural world. The Houston Zoo is a proud supporter of the Art of Conservation program in Rwanda

Art of Conservation (AoC)  is seeking a dedicated, experienced administrative support intern to work directly with AoC Director Julie Ghrist. Interns must commit at least six weeks to the position. After six weeks, the intern position may be extended at the discretion of the Director. For a description of the position and application – link here

Rushubi Primary School 5th grade class

AoC also occasionally accepts volunteers (link here for application) for short- to medium-term volunteer placements. Their needs vary depending on the staffing situation and class schedule. In general, they seek honest, hard-working individuals who can offer support in one or more of the following areas:

  • Teaching the English-language portion of our conservation education curriculum. We are particularly interested in volunteer teachers who have a background in conservation, biology, agriculture, medicine, or public health.
  • Teaching the English-language portion of our art curriculum. We are particularly interested in volunteer teachers who have a background in drawing, painting, music, or drama.
  • Administrative work including memo writing and grant research.
  • English-language training for non-English speaking staff.
  • Computer skills training for staff.

Ready for an experience of a lifetime? Well, here is one where you can both learn and give at the same time.

I wonder if Art of Conservation will let me volunteer with them this week...maybe I will just eat some bamboo instead

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Jul
22

Spay and Neuter Your Pets

Posted by Peter in Africa,Endangered Species,Featured,What You Can Do,community-based conservation

First a story from Botswana: Cheetah Conservation Botswana works with local communities to keep their livestock guard dogs healthy. The livestock guard dogs are used to keep predators away from the community herds thus removing the need to shoot animals such as cheetahs and leopards which would normally prey on goats and cows. A little health prevention for domestic animals will go a long way in protecting wildlife in the region.

This week Cheetah Conservation Botswana (CCB) commenced a sterilization and vaccination mobile clinic for livestock guarding dogs. CCB offers free veterinary care for working guard dogs protecting livestock against predators. The mobile clinic is assisted by two overseas vets and will be visiting towns across Botswana travelling 600 miles over 4 days.

Earlier in the month of June, CCB launched its 4th annual ‘ Best livestock guarding dog in Botswana’ competition. Livestock guarding dogs are used with sheep, goats and cattle to alert them and protect them against predators. Every year CCB holds a competition to find the best dog in the country. The 2010 competition has just begun and is being …advertised on local radio. Winners win veterinary,hardware and dog supplies, and a trip for the family into the Okavango Delta.

What does that have to do with you? It’s all about you isn’t it? I will tell you anyway. Keeping your domestic pets healthy here at home can also help protect wildlife. We have all seen the stray cat and dog on the street – and they eventually are forced to eat native wildlife such as birds and small mammals when they can.

There is no need for the massive surplus in pet dogs and cats and they do not need to end up in shelters – spay and neuter your pets (unless you are breeding registered pets for competitions), there are plenty of kittens and puppies out there for every household and shelters would love for you to adopt today. Another great option here is H.O.P.E. (Homeless and Orphaned Pets Endeavor) which is a is an all-foster, no kill adoption group based in the Houston area. You may see them out at the local PetSmart on weekends.

Bonus question: To win a free small plush animal from the Houston Zoo – tell us what tv personality always ended his show “Don’t forget to spay and neuter your pets”. Three winners will be notified next week.

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