Painted dogs, often called painted wild dogs or simply wild dogs, were once estimated to number in the hundreds of thousands and with a ~90% reduction, are now among Africa’s most endangered carnivores, yet Khamab Kalahari Reserve offers one of the best chances on the continent to witness their electrifying pack life in the wild. Let us focus on what makes this painted dog safari so extraordinary, how our ongoing painted dog monitoring drives conservation, and why joining an ethical safari with Working with Wildlife is a smart and unique way to support their survival.

Painted dog seen at Khamab Kalahari Reserve

Painted dogs (painted wild dogs or African wild dogs) number fewer than 6,600 animals (~1 400 mature adults) across all sub-Saharan Africa, with approximately 10% of these occurring in South Africa, making them every bit as rare as cheetahs or black rhinos. Their decline is driven by four overlapping threats that we detail on our painted wild dog monitoring programme in the Kalahari:

Without doubt, the biggest knock to painted dog numbers has been habitat loss. Expanding agricultural and livestock farms break the continuous home ranges that a roaming wild dog pack needs. A single pack can cover a home range of more than 900 km². Although painted wild dogs have been successful in smaller areas, every new fence squeezes their territory further. Learn how we track these painted dogs on our African Wild Dog Monitoring project.

In Khamab Kalahari Reserve, we see direct evidence of this range in our GPS data where a single pack can cover the entirety of the 960 km² reserve and occasionally, we have documented them move as much as 45km in a single day. Outside of these fenced reserves, the result of their large range means higher encounter rates with livestock, increased intraspecific conflict when displaced packs overlap, and a slow but steady erosion of genetic and behavioural diversity as suitable corridors and overall habitat and prey availability decreases.

Painted dogs playing, an important form of social bonding within the pack

While less of a problem in South Africa due to fenced systems, when painted dogs leave protected areas they are well known to prey on livestock and/or wildlife on private farms, prompting retaliatory killings from these farm owners. There remain some free-roaming painted wild dogs in South Africa’s Waterberg region and these dogs have been successfully protected through effective community outreach projects promoting the ecological benefits of a healthy painted dog population. However, persecution of painted dogs, particularly outside of South Africa, remains a major problem for the species.

Even within fenced systems, painted wild dogs are highly susceptible to snares and while this does not pose a major problem at Khamab Kalahari Reserve due to the lack of surrounding communities, it’s a major cause of loss for key painted dog populations in wild habitats. The painted dogs might not be the intended victims, but snares are indiscriminate in nature and the vast distances these dogs cover places them at much higher risks of encountering them.

Rabies and canine distemper, often contracted from unvaccinated street dogs roaming communities, can wipe out an entire local painted dog pack population within weeks. Vaccination efforts by charitable entities within these low-income communities form a core part of painted dog conservation efforts. However, it is important to note that both rabies and canine distemper are natural diseases, and painted dog populations throughout Africa are currently so fragmented, that the loss of painted dogs in one area to either rabies or canine distemper will have no impact on painted dog populations elsewhere in Africa.

Even though painted dogs remain critically endangered, and these diseases have the potential to kill entire (localised) painted dog populations, they are unlikely to further endanger the species. Other predators are also susceptible to these diseases.

Because populations are so fragmented, packs rarely exchange genes as the lack of corridors between habitats prohibits them from doing so. This problem is worsened by fenced systems that prevent dispersing pack members from traveling hundreds of kilometers away from their natal pack, as they naturally would, and increases the likelihood of homicide and inbreeding occurring. Through the continued efforts of WAG (Wild Dog Advisory Group) and EWT (Endangered Wildlife Trust) in South Africa, painted dogs are often exchanged between reserves and unrelated dogs are sometimes bonded in bomas to simulate this natural distribution of genetics.

Unfortunately, the limit on remaining suitable painted dog habitat means that there is often nowhere to send these animals, and reserve are forced to use contraceptives to mitigate the impact of local painted dog population increases on prey when no alternative exists. Paradoxically, painted dogs can become victims of their own reproductive success given the man-made limitations imposed upon them, that efforts are made to keep their numbers down.

By joining our ethical safari, you aren’t merely observing these elusive hunters in their natural habitat, you’re actively supporting key collaring and data analysis that feed straight into ecological management plans. This direct impact is why we can confidently say that conservation safaris such as this one, is the most effective and ethical way to see (and protect) painted dogs in Africa.

Painted wild dogs are considered amongst the continent’s most efficient hunters, with data suggesting that they succeed in up to 80 % of pursuits, nearly triple the strike-rate of lions. Even though we do not see such hunt success rates in the Eastern Kalahari given the larger and more difficult available prey, one cannot deny the remarkable hunting abilities of painted dogs, even if these high success rates are more likely area specific. Understanding that success begins with pack structure, and nowhere is it easier to observe than on our Kalahari painted dog monitoring drives.

Adult painted dog looking after the puppies while the rest of the pack departs on a hunt

Every painted dog pack is anchored by an alpha pair, and they are typically (but not always) the only breeders. Occasionally, when prey availability is good and there are sufficient pack members to help, Beta and even Charlie females can have pups. Once pups reach 2 – 3 years of age, females disperse, and males remain to strengthen the pack. The entire pack helps to raise the pups, as this further serves to protect their own long-term survival, and the survival of their genetics.

However, it is this very family structure that keeps painted dogs so endangered as most individuals within a pack are by default, siblings. This means that few of the remaining ~6 600 dogs are suitable for breeding. While the pack is led by a single alpha male-female pair, their day-to-day activities are surprisingly egalitarian.

Painted dogs chase prey at speeds up to 60 km/h with remarkable endurance due to their tight gait, oversized heart, and efficient heat-dissipating capillaries that allow them to lope at these speeds for kilometers, forcing prey to exhaustion. Typically, they are known to chase impala or nyala over several kilometers until the prey tires.

In the Eastern Kalahari Bushveld of Khamab Reserve, the lack of these defenseless antelope leaves painted dogs with little choice but to target much larger and more fearsome antelope like gemsbok (oryx), eland, wildebeest, and red hartebeest. Unlike female impala and nyala, both sexes of these Kalahari antelope have lethal horns to defend themselves.

Unlike Lions or Cheetahs, after a kill, adults feed and return to regurgitate meat for pups, and their supervising nanny dog, waiting patiently at the den. This extraordinary altruism cements social bonds and maximizes pup survival. Similar altruistic behavior is observed among adult members, with painted dogs being notorious for helping to keep injured pack members alive. Guests on our painted dog safari frequently witness blood-red faced dogs caring for one another, a heart-warming counter-image to their “relentless killer” stereotype.

Camera traps positioned at den sites (see our Camera Traps programme) have captured rare footage of:

• Mid-day pup play sessions with all pack members engaging with pups.
• Early morning successful hunts where adult painted dogs exit the den to go hunting in winter morning temperatures which are often below freezing. This suggests that painted dogs are less affected by extreme cold temperatures as they are warmer temperatures.
• Nocturnal behaviour as the dogs and pups emerge from the den, even in the middle of the night.

These insights allow us to determine kill frequencies during denning months non-invasively as the dogs can be visibly seen exiting a den when hungry and returning with full bellies. Through camera traps, we can accurately document every hunt session during this period, thus aiding ecological management decisions on painted dog prey impact.

Paradoxically, an unchecked surge in painted dogs can crash local prey populations. Break-away groups form new packs and females can whelp litters of up to twenty pups, and packs traverse huge distances in the absence of roads. Without precise monitoring of pack size, territory overlap, and kill rates, a thriving population can overshoot carrying capacity and trigger prey collapse across the reserve. Continuous painted dog monitoring delivers the hard numbers like distribution, pup survival, hunting pressure, prey preference, and kill frequencies, all of which are needed to keep both predator and prey in balance.

Tracking a wide-ranging painted wild dog pack across 90 000 ha of Eastern Kalahari Bushvelds demands more than luck. Our African Wild Dog Monitoring programme combines satellite collars, VHF telemetry, and camera traps to maximize our chances of collecting valuable data and generating a comprehensive dataset.

Much like our Pangolin monitoring efforts, painted wild dogs are also found using GPS units. Every focal pack carries at least two lightweight GPS satellite collars programmed to ping location fixes at set intervals. These intervals are carefully chosen and spread between the different collars to preserve battery life yet provide the most valuable data possible. The goal is to fit and remove collars as seldom as possible to avoid unnecessary stress on these animals, yet to know where the pack is moving and resting throughout the day. Unusual positions (e.g. no movement in key hours) might indicate kill sites which require further investigation.

Painted dogs are unlikely to move during the heat of the day, and there is little value in requesting frequent GPS positions in these hours. It is ideal to fit two satellite collars to each pack, several months apart to create a buffer in battery life. This means that should a collar unexpectedly fail, there remains a second collar to locate a pack and retrieve and replace the broken collar without a loss of data collection.

A new satellite collar being fitted to a painted dog

Satellite collars are fitted with VHF beacons on secondary batteries that allow for precise location through a telemetry receiver when within range. This means that fewer of these battery-draining GPS positions are required and these positions can serve as ideal starting points to locate the dogs in real time using their low-powered VHF units.

Camera traps are strategically placed around the reserve to help ascertain wild dog populations and keep track of identifiable dogs that may have split away from the pack. Given the painted dog’s high metabolic rate, kill frequencies are likely comparable amongst different groups, and the data gathered from the consistent monitoring of one pack can be used to somewhat accurately determine the impact of other known packs. Camera traps are key to know how many dog groups there are.  

Painted dog pup curiously investigating a trail camera

When a satellite collar suggests denning is taking place, camera traps can (see Camera Traps) go live, letting us gauge kill frequencies and pup emergence without human disturbance.

• Choose Your Dates: Painted dog monitoring is important throughout the year, as diet and behaviour differs substantially. This means that data collection is vital year-round.
• Secure Your Spot: We operate only one vehicle (max 8 guests) when conducting painted dog monitoring.
• Book or Enquire: Click the “Book Now” button on our Painted Dog Safari page or feel free to Contact us with any questions you may have.

If tracking Africa’s most endangered pack hunter across 90 000 hectares of wilderness sounds like your kind of safari, it’s time to sign up. So, if you’re ready to witness one of Africa’s most endangered wild hunters and fund the science that keeps them running, Reserve your ethical painted dog safari today and be part of the solution.

The Kalahari rewards patience with spectacles few scripted safaris can match, yet the apex thrill remains the synchronized acceleration of painted dogs fanning across open silky bushman’s grass with their ears flat, legs blurring, teamwork distilled into raw speed.

Want to see painted dogs for yourself? Join Our Working with Wildlife unique Kalahari Safari Project to help African Wildlife, Contact Us for any other questions, or read our Testimonials page to hear what previous guests say!