Hi folks,
It’s very easy to get tied up with a single issue when dealing with something like this rabies outbreak, but we are still working at all levels of wild dog conservation whilst this is going on.
Some of you may remember a post a while ago, highlighting the threat to wild dogs from trafficking. This is where wild dogs are taken illegally from the wild, bred in captivity and then sent to zoos and breeding centers in China, Korea etc, where they are (usually) kept in absolutely horrific circumstances. See this link for the undercover video of this story, made thanks to the efforts of Painted Dog Conservation Project in Hwange.
Wild dogs are currently not listed on CITES (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora), due to a mis-perception that there is not trade in the species. However, we are hoping to get this situation changed at the next CITES meeting, and PDC has a petition out to help us achieve this. Please help us by signing the petition at www.painteddogsoncites.org.
Thank you for your support
Rosemary
7 Comments
Just signed the petition. You really need to get this petition listed with the large global petition sites such as Care2.com. They have a lot of wildlife and other animal related petitions, which get a lot of attention.
Unfortunately I’m not up to watching the undercover video.. It could be too much for me at this point when most of the Maverick pack has died.
Mongabay reported yesterday that it has been confirmed that the African Wild Dog and Cheetah are now officially extinct in Cameroon.
Have also signed and agree with Pirjo’s suggestion of adding this to Care2, as they are very effective. Must admit I am one of thos who hadn’t realised there is a trade in wild dogs – how appalling.
I, too, cannot bear to watch the video, but I did sign the petition. While visiting China in +/- 1992, I ran out of a zoo in southern China literally sobbing after seeing the absolutely horrible conditions in which the dogs were kept — One dog was eating (yes, eating and not licking) his own leg in desperation. The appalling trade in wild dogs MUST be stopped.
Have signed and shared on Facebook… this issue needs much more attention.
Signed andnam circulating it to my clinic cliemts
Hi all,
Thanks very much for your support and comments on this issue. I’ll see what I can do about getting the petition on Care2. Thanks for the suggestion. Yes, the video is a bit harrowing and not something to watch unless you are feeling up to it. The cruelty of some humans is absolutely incomprehensible to me.
Hopefully getting the dogs onto CITES will be one more tool we can use to help conserve these amazing animals.
Rosemary