Rabies is a significant threat to painted wolves in Kenya’s Tsavo East National Park. In 2023, a pack of 18 was reduced to only 4 and this killer disease was suspected as the cause. It is believed that domestic dogs are a major transmitter of rabies to painted wolf packs and the likelihood of its prevalence in communities around Tsavo East is high.
Tsavo Trust and Painted Wolf Foundation partnered to develop a strategy to keep painted wolves safe. Some of this work will take several years to implement, but addressing the threat of rabies quickly was considered a low hanging fruit.
Tsavo Trust engaged with the local Kamungi community to understand how widespread rabies is amongst domestic dogs in the area, as well as understand community attitudes towards painted wolves and their experiences with them.
Tsavo Trust initiated a community-wide survey, funded by the Painted Dog Fund, which confirmed widespread concern over rabies in their domestic animals and the community’s strong desire for a solution.
As part of the same grant Tsavo Trust was able to deliver a community vaccination programme. 50% of dog-owning households were reached across 12 villages and 594 animals were vaccinated in total.
Communications around this benefit have linked the vaccinations to the renewed effort to conserve painted wolves in the landscape, raising the profile of the species and building a clear incentive for the community to tolerate their presence.
The success of this programme has been enabled by Tsavo Trust’s strong relationship with the Kamungi Conservancy Community built over many years, as well as their partnership with Kenyan Wildlife Services and Wildlife Research and Training Institute.
Our partnership with Tsavo Trust brings a much-needed focus to painted wolves across Tsavo.
Images courtesy of Tsavo Trust.
