Dholes in Zoos
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In 2021 we focused on getting more education programs together for all grades. With help from our amazing educators, we were able to do that. We are still working on getting these programs out to as many zoos and programs as possible but we are also looking to continue expanding our outreach in other areas.
Many people in the US have never heard of a dhole let alone seen one. The main reason they don’t live in that region. However, most Americans have heard of and seen a lion, tiger, or elephant. The reason why is that these animals are often seen in popular media. What about things like gorillas, zebra, or kolas? They pop up in popular culture now and then but if you say their name everyone instantly knows what you’re talking about and has seen one. How and why? Because of zoos. All these animals are often in zoos, which is how kids often first experience animals. Some species have only gotten a chance of conservation help when zoos stepped in. |
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So, what happened to dholes? Well, there are only five zoos that house them. Their current population in American zoos is basically at a standstill. It needs some new genetics. With new genetics, it will also mean more zoos will have to join to house dholes. This would allow more people to see them and learn about them. We often get asked: “Why do we support dholes in zoos? I thought you were about conserving wild dholes in the wild.” We are! That’s our number one goal. But hear us out on why we need more zoo support to help dholes. Here are the main points. |
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Why Zoos?
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1.) Conservation Funding – the 230 accredited AZA (American Zoos and Aquariums – an accrediting organization) give a total of $160 million for global conservation yearly. This goes to over 2500 projects in over 100 countries. Most of those funds go towards animals they have in their collection and work with. So that’s only the AZA facilities, there’s thought to be over 350 zoos in the US alone. These smaller zoos give to conservation as well.
2.) Education and awareness – Many zoos are designed to help educate their guest about the animals they house. Although documentaries and the internet have allowed people to learn more about animals what often sparks people to look into these is seeing the animal in real life. There’s something about seeing a Silverback Gorilla that sticks with someone. It’s seeing and hearing stories about those animals at the zoos that often get people to look into different animals. It’s very rare for someone on their drive home to think “hu I wonder what competes with tigers and leopards in Asia for food.” That would be a dhole by the way.
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3.) A living Ark – It’s hard to tell how many species have been saved from extinction thanks to captive populations. It’s thought that anywhere from 20 to 50 species are thought to have beat extinction due to captive breeding and reintroduction efforts of zoos. Just a few examples are the California Condor, Przewalski’s horse, and the Arabian oryx. Many would say that the list doesn’t include a single predator, however, in the US they have reintroduced Mexican Wolves with success and even Red Wolves with mixed results. Russia has had success reintroducing tigers that were raised in captivity due to being orphaned. Predators can be reintroduced as long as there is wild left for them.
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4.) Research potential – Very little is truly known on dholes. Things like capture techniques and collar size and placement that are vital for wild research are all taken from African Wild Dog and wolf data, captive dholes allow for better fitting. Also, things like paw prints and scat samples allow the researcher to practice their skills and techniques on samples that are easy to get and able to be replicated, something that isn’t possible with all wild samples. We also get a glimpse of pack behavior, although not a 100% accurate picture of a wild back it's at least a step in the right direction.
The hope is by getting more zoos onboard with dholes in their zoos will increase people’s awareness of the species.
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Personal Connection
We hope that seeing dholes in person will give other people a feeling of connection to dholes
We will tell you that we truly wish there was no need for zoos or that zoos only had to house animals that couldn't survive on their own. That there was enough wild for every animal and human to live in peace. That if someone wanted to see a particular creature, they would have the means and opportunity to do so in the wild and that viewing would have no impact on the wild creature or the ecosystem. The reality is we don’t live in that life. Very few will get to travel to these places and see wildlife outside their backyards. There is also an increase in research that is showing some wildlife viewing might be negatively impacting the very creatures they are trying to help. Yes, we have TVs and screens now that show these animals in new hi-def vision available to everyone. With the screen, it getting ever increasingly hard to tell reality from computer-generated. When you’re at a zoo the animal is real, the sounds are real and yes even the smell is real; that’s something a screen just can’t deliver.
We will tell you that we truly wish there was no need for zoos or that zoos only had to house animals that couldn't survive on their own. That there was enough wild for every animal and human to live in peace. That if someone wanted to see a particular creature, they would have the means and opportunity to do so in the wild and that viewing would have no impact on the wild creature or the ecosystem. The reality is we don’t live in that life. Very few will get to travel to these places and see wildlife outside their backyards. There is also an increase in research that is showing some wildlife viewing might be negatively impacting the very creatures they are trying to help. Yes, we have TVs and screens now that show these animals in new hi-def vision available to everyone. With the screen, it getting ever increasingly hard to tell reality from computer-generated. When you’re at a zoo the animal is real, the sounds are real and yes even the smell is real; that’s something a screen just can’t deliver.
How are we going to do it?
So how are we going to do these? How are we going to get zoos on board with getting dholes?
- The first is to get the current zoos involved with dholes to recommit to the species. We’ll see how these facilities would like to be involved.
- Next worked with a population Biologist to see how many new genetic lines need to be imported from Europe to have a viable population and limit the need for future imports.
- At the same time reach out to new zoos that might be interested in possibly adding dholes to their program. We already have a tentative list, but first, we need to see what the existing facilities would like.
- To help generate more interest in dholes we are working on a short video that can be sent to zoos curators and staff that show dholes in captivity and how much fun they can be for staff and visitors alike; while also dispelling some myths about keeping dholes.
- Once an idea of how many spaces and facilities are on board and the result from the population biologist we work on logistics of import and where each animal is going.
- Yearly breeding and transfer plans.
Expectation and Goals
This project isn't something we will complete in 2022, it will be an ongoing project. It will also not be our main focus. Our main focus is to get our field projects up and going again and help wild dholes and the communities around them.
Interested in helping get dholes to America? E-mail us at [email protected] for more info.
