A pair of bloodhounds from Britain join Kenya’s war against wildlife poachers.

Two bloodhounds, named Pension and Drastic, have arrived safely in Kenya to begin their new lives. The dogs’ legendary scenting abilities will be used to track poachers across the Amboseli reserve, Tsavo National Park and the Chyulu Hills.

The Times Online reports that Richard Bonham, founder of the Maasailand Preservation Trust, which patrols 1.5 million acres of bush-covered hills and plains in southeast Kenya, has been using bloodhounds to track poachers since 2006. Thanks to the dogs, dozens of poachers have been arrested in Kenya.

The bloodhounds definitely have a big impact on poaching. They are a very effective tool … We used to follow tracks on the ground, but the dogs take it to another level.

Bloodhounds are able to track humans through seemingly impossible terrain - even petrified lava flows.

Bloodhounds at work

The bloodhounds will be working in the home of endangered black rhino, where the Maasailand Preservation Trust is responsible for the Chyulu Rhino Project.

Charlie Mayhew, founder of the British wildlife charity Tusk, which provides funding for the bloodhound program, strongly advocates the use of these extraordinary dogs for tracking poachers.

The dogs are highly effective, as they can track for several days after an incident.

What about helping elephants?

Kenya has unfortunately seen a disturbing increase in elephant killings recently, and many believe that Chinese workers “arriving in large numbers in recent years to build roads, railways and dams in infrastructure-for-minerals deals” are behind the gruesome situation. The head of species conservation at Kenya Wildlife Service, Patrick Omondi confirms this assessment.

There has been an upsurge in poaching and we associate this with the Chinese.

Although the Times article didn’t say whether or not the bloodhounds would be used for tracking elephant poachers - specifically in the vicinity of the aforementioned construction projects - perhaps it wouldn’t be a bad idea to put bloodhounds on this situation.

Last year’s legal ivory auction to China and Japan is to blame for igniting the current elephant poaching crisis. Kenya Wildlife Service and other conservation experts were against the sale, warning that it would fuel the demand in China for illegal trade in ivory - and result in widespread elephant poaching.

Sadly, the conservationists were right.

Anyway, whether the case is organized poaching syndicates slaughtering elephant and rhino, or the locals illegally trapping smaller game, let’s hope Pension and Drastic track down plenty of poachers.

Source: GO Media: Written by Rhishja Larson - Image source: http://www.flickr.com / CC BY 2.0

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