A few weeks ago, the management from Mogotlo Lodge informed us that they encountered a pack of wild dogs and that one of the dogs had a wire-snare around its neck. Although we immediately headed out trying to locate the pack, we couldn’t find the dogs. African wild dogs roam massive home ranges of several hundred km2 and finding them without radio collars requires quite a lot of perseverance, kilometers driven, spoor tracking skills, and a great deal of luck. Luckily, a few weeks we finally found them and with the help of a veterinarian, we were able to remove the snare and treat the dog. Since the snare had already been on the dog for a long time, it had cut deeply into its neck and caused a severe infection, which required some serious cleaning and the use of antibiotics. A story with a happy ending, as the dog fully recovered from this unlucky incident. To be able to monitor the treated dog and keep a close eye to the pack, we decided to take the opportunity of the presence of the vet and deployed a GPS/Satellite collar on the pack’s dominant male.
Figure 1: Snare removal on the wild dog that was reported by the guides at the Mogotlo lodge.
A few weeks later, Alex and I headed out again to check on the dogs. This time finding them was an easy task, thanks to the precise GPS location that the collar had just sent via Iridium Satellite system to our server. As we arrived on site, the dogs were resting right next to the main Khwai-to-Mababe road, in the shade of a couple of Mopane trees. We immediately started taking identification pictures (left sides, right sides and hinds) of each individual. In a pack 17 dogs, getting all the necessary ID pictures can be chaotic and requires quite some time. At some point, Alex flipped through the photos on his camera and startled, as yet another dog had a wire-snare around its neck. Slightly confused about our finding we evaluated our options. We concluded it would be best to confer with “dog camp” (so we familiarly call our research camp station) and ask for advice. Unfortunately, we were too far from dog camp and out of radio comms. Luckily, a short climb on top of the car was all that was needed to get enough phone reception for a broken yet clear enough call. “For f..ks sake… not again”, was the worried response of our camp manager Peter. Pressed for time, as the morning was slowly turning into afternoon and the drive from Maun to our location would have taken several hours, Peter was left with no other options than to fly Rob Jackson, the vet, from Maun to where we were by Helicopter.
Figure 2: One of the three snared wild dogs that we recently discovered. The wire snare is barely visible as it is tightly strapped around the dog’s neck.
Relieved that we would get help from the vet, Alex and I continued taking ID pictures of the dogs. While driving from one huddle of dogs to another, we always tried to keep an eye on the snared dog, just to be sure we could easily point it out once Rob arrived. This is easier said than done, as the dogs constantly moved from one shady spot to another. Oddly enough, we felt that the snared dog disappeared on our right but reappeared on our left. Eventually, we got so confused that we flipped through our images again. Oh my! It turned out that not one, but three dogs had been snared.
Fortunately, we soon heard the faint humming of an approaching helicopter. Rob was on his way! I still struggle to understand how, but Dan, the pilot from Helicopter Horizon, managed to land his machine safely in the dense Mopane forest, a couple hundred meters away from the dogs. Only a few minutes later, Rob and Dan popped out of the bush and climbed onto our car. Because the dogs had moved again, it took us a while to pin down the first snared individual. Once we found it, Rob immediately took a shot with the dart gun. Bullseye! The dart hit perfectly and around ten minutes later the dog was deep asleep. We approached the sleeping dog and Rob removed the wire snare. It hadn’t been on the dog for long, so luckily it hadn’t caused too much damage. As soon as the snare was removed and the wound cleaned, we went for the next dog.
Figure 3: All three snares that we removed that day. They had not been on the dogs for very long and still look clean.
Because the dogs rested so close to the road, the operation attracted several tourists that were on their way into Moremi or Chobe. Before we realized, a crowd monitoring our every movement had gathered. Undistracted by our observers, we continued our work and successfully removed all three snares within less than two hours. None of the dogs was seriously injured, so we immediately injected them with the reversal solution to neutralize the anesthetic. As the last dog recovered from the anesthesia, the pack started to move and slowly ventured off into the sunset, followed by a convoy of safari vehicles. Mission accomplished; it was the perfect time to celebrate with a cold beer.
Figure 4: Right after we removed the last snare, the dogs started to move and prepared for a hunt. The front dog is the dominant male, who now carries a GPS satellite collar that allows us to monitor the pack’s movements remotely.
Judging by the wounds, we suspected that the snares hadn’t been on the dogs for longer than two weeks. Back in camp, we thus investigated the pack’s GPS data during the previous two weeks and traced their route to get a feeling of where the snares may have been. This was clearly not an isolated case and the possibility that something similar would happen again in the future was more than real. We speculated that the dogs may had picked up the snares somewhere in the proximity of Mababe village, where the dogs had roamed for a couple days. Most likely the snares were set with the purpose of obtaining bush meat from antelopes and other game, but sadly they are so unspecific that often non-target species become victims too.
Figure 5: Movement route of the pack two weeks prior to the snare removal. As you can see from their trajectory, the dogs passed by the village of Mababe, a village known for its illegal trapping and hunting activities.
In response to these and other snaring activities in the region, Botswana Predator Conservation together with the Department of Wildlife and National Parks (DWNP), DWNP Anti-Poaching Unit (APU), DWNP Investigations, Botswana Police Service, DWNP K9 Unit, and the Botswana Defence Force (BDF), as well as private entities including Great Plains Foundation (GPF) and CONNECT engaged in a joint operation to locate and remove as many snares as possible. Over the course of five days, four de-snaring teams discovered and removed a total of 108 snares, of which 52 lied within the Khwai Concession (NG19) and 56 within the Mababe Concession (NG41). The teams also disclosed a hidden stash of elephant tusks which was handed over to the relevant authorities, as well as several bird traps setup near lodges.
The story goes to show that snaring remains a major threat to wildlife, especially in the vicinity of villages. The operation was successful, and it also serves to illustrate that joining forces of various governmental and non-governmental organizations is critical to combat the consequences of illegal hunting endeavors.