On safari with the fearsome dogs protecting South Africa’s wildlife

Poaching presents a significant threat to Kruger Park’s biodiversity, which calls for help from a highly skilled – and hairy – squad

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November is a great time for safaris in South Africa. Although the landscape here in the Kruger at this time of year is “dor” (an Afrikaans word meaning arid and colourless), the uniform brown of grasses, shrubs and termite mounds is beginning to flush with bright, fresh greens in the wake of the season’s first rains. The sparse foliage makes wildlife easier to spot. Already on this afternoon’s game drive, we’ve seen three of the Big Five, including a leopard lazily sprawled in the shade, digesting a meal of impala, and a pair of lions napping in between vigorous bouts of mating.
We’ve watched a herd of elephants bulldoze their way through the scrub, feasting on the new growth, and giraffes close enough to admire the variation in their splotches, from a checkerboard pattern on their necks to maple leaf shapes on their rumps. There are zebra, kudu and wildebeest too, though my favourites are the nyala antelope dressed in tawny coats accented with neat white stripes and dainty black hoofs. “There’s a whole family of them back at the lodge,” André, our safari guide, tells us. “Well, at least there was until the other night, when a leopard took one by the gym.”
Such immersive, close-up game-viewing is the essence of a safari – and the chances of success are particularly strong in this part of the Greater Kruger. I’m staying at Malewane Lodge, one of six accommodation options within Royal Malewane, a super-luxurious resort in the Thornybush Private Game Reserve. Not only does Thornybush harbour an impressive density of big game, but Royal Malewane’s guiding team is the most qualified in Africa. It’s a combination that lends itself to phenomenal wildlife encounters.
The abundance of animals goes beyond having healthy habitats and permanent waterholes. Anti-poaching patrols are also essential, for illegal hunting is rife in the Kruger. But as one of a chain of game reserves on its western flank, Thornybush buffers the national park from the outside world, putting the reserve at the cutting edge of conservation. And to protect its wildlife, the rangers employ some unorthodox personnel: the Tango K9 unit’s 10-strong team of dogs and their dedicated handlers.
I met some of the team the following morning on an excursion to their training camp. While Fernando, one of the handlers, puts a pair of the dogs through their paces, he describes their important contribution here at Thornybush. “Our purpose is tracking, detection and apprehension,” he explains as the dogs – fearsome-looking, black-faced Dutch shepherds – dash about the paddock, seeking the contraband that he’s hidden. “They’re trained to sniff out ivory, rhino horn, lion bones and pangolin scales: the illegal wildlife products that are in huge demand in Asian markets.”
The dogs are also trained to sniff out ammunition, for this is dangerous work. “Poachers normally come in groups of four: a tracker, a shooter, a butcher and a heavily armed security who will shoot to kill if rangers show up,” says Fernando. “But they’re almost always terrified of dogs.” To show us why, another handler dons a protective armband as the training shifts from detection to apprehension. In response to Fernando’s command, the dog leaps forward and grabs the well-wrapped arm, biting hard and not letting go. The move would immobilise a real threat in the bush.
Ferocious though these animals may be, there’s an obvious bond between handler and dog. “We’re a pack,” explains Fernando as he separates the dog from the armband and rewards it with a treat. “This is seriously intensive training. We start the dogs at eight weeks old and they’re ready to patrol by the time they’re two. We have to train them to be smarter than the poachers, whose tricks include using buffalo dung to mask their scent.”
All this hard work pays off. “In the four years that this unit has operated, we haven’t lost a single rhino,” Fernando says proudly. “Along with our neighbouring reserves’ canine units, we’re an impressive deterrent to poachers; and if they can’t get through our properties, the heart of the Kruger stays safer.”
Even so, rhinos hereabouts are in a precarious position. Thornybush shares an open border with the Kruger, allowing wildlife to roam; but it’s thought that the wider region lost half its black rhinos and three quarters of its white rhinos in the decade up to 2022. Later, on the afternoon game drive, we find out exactly why.
As we bump down a track through the bush, the guides talk to colleagues on the radio, using animals’ local names (“ngala” for lion, “‘ingwe” for leopard) as a code, disguising their intentions so as not to disappoint guests if we miss a target species. A report comes in of a nearby “umkhombe”, so we follow its co-ordinates to discover a huge white rhino: magnificent for sure, but with only a stump where his horn should be.
“We dehorn them for their own protection,” explains André. “An adult rhino might otherwise be carrying a million US dollars around the bush. If we remove it, there’s less incentive for poachers to kill them.”
We watch for a while as the rhino grazes, unaware of the huge price on his head. “The horns grow back though,” André continues, “so our rangers must always be vigilant.” And with that, we bounce off again down the track, filled with respect for the bravery of the rangers and their canine companions.
Malewane Lodge’s Luxury Suites cost from £2,071 per person per night, full board. Luxury Africa specialist Rainbow can package flights, transfers, two nights’ B&B at Johannesburg’s Four Seasons Westcliff and four nights’ full board at Malewane Lodge (including two daily game drives) from £11,650pp. Or choose Waterside at Royal Malewane, where the same package costs from £8,199pp.
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