Rocky and Jerry strike again! Last month, Honeyguide’s Dog Unit supported rangers from the Enduimet Wildlife Management Area, Big Life Foundation, and the Kenya Wildlife Service in a joint operation that led to the arrest of a notorious elephant poacher in Kenya.

Read the full dramatic account from Big Life Foundation.

On November 18, Big Life Kenyan rangers discovered a 34-year-old elephant in Kimana near the border with Tanzania. The rangers then called in the Dog Unit from Tanzania for back-up. The elephant had been well-known to area conservationists and had been named Stuart by a researcher years ago.

It did not take long for Rocky and Jerry to pick up the scent of the poachers from their footprints and to quickly trace them to some local homes where the poachers had slept the previous night. Kimana community members provided information that later led to the arrest of one poacher, the recovery of the ivory, and identification of three other poachers, who are currently being pursued by Kenyan authorities.

“We are thrilled that the Dog Unit played a critical role in the operation,” said Meleck Laizer, Honeyguide’s coordinator for the West Kilimanjaro-Amboseli ecosystem. “All teams displayed outstanding cooperation for the good of conservation.”

Rocky discovers a poacher's hideout

 

 

Remains of Stuart, the elephant killed horribly for his tusks