Staff Reporter
DOGS especially trained by Denel in tracking will now be used to sniff out rhino poachers in the Kruger National Park.
The dogs will be deployed in South Africa’s top wild life reserve for the next 18 months in terms of an agreement signed between Denel and SANParks recently.
Riaz Saloojee, the Group CEO of Denel says the company is looking forward to working with nature conservation authorities to combat the scourge of poaching.
“There is global concern about the devastating impact of poaching on our resources, but the most effective action is to be on the ground, detect the poaching gangs and apprehend them before they can do further damage,” Saloojee said.
The dogs and their handlers have, in the past, been used to great effect to detect explosives and hidden landmines in war zones across Africa and the Middle East.
“The canine unit at Denel Mechem provides the most effective answer in the battle against poaching,” added Saloojee.
The dogs have also scored successes in sniffing out smuggled drugs, contraband and ivory at airports and border posts.
“Our focus is now on the illicit poaching of rhinos,” he explained. “Mechem will supply trained dogs and train SANParks dog handlers that will be deployed in the Kruger Park.
“Technical K9 support and specialised dog care programmes will also be provided for the duration of the contract period.”
Saloojee said Denel was delighted to work with SANParks and to contribute to its extensive efforts to protect South Africa’s natural resources.
He said it was exciting to see two state-owned companies pooling their resources and expertise to participate in a project that is of national and regional importance.
Dr Hannes Slabbert, a senior manager at Denel, said the company had gained a lot of experience in the field of training dogs over the past three years and had supplied trained anti-rhino poaching dogs and specialised handler training to several private game reserves and SANParks.
“Dog/handler combinations form formidable teams – and we are quite confident that we can have a huge impact on efforts intended to break the back of rhino horn smuggling operations in the Kruger Park.”