Six endangered African painted dog pups become newest additions to Oklahoma Zoo

Six rare African painted dog pups were born at an Oklahoma zoo, happy news for the species, which has been rapidly declining over the past decade.

The six pups were born to first-time mother Pele on 5 and 6 November, the Oklahoma City Zoo and Botanical Garden announced in a news release.

The new arrivals are a significant step towards conserving the species after its population drastically fell over the last 10 years from around 11,800 in 2010 to approximately 5,000 left in the wild in 2022.

The species is now endangered in the wild and are thought to be dying out due to climate change making it harder for young pups to keep up with their packs in scorching conditions, said ZSL.

“Every birth at the Oklahoma City Zoo is significant, and we’re extremely excited to have our first litter of African painted dog puppies in our Predator Pass Habitat since opening in 2021 and the first at the Zoo since 2016,” said Tyler Boyd, the Zoo’s Curator of Carnivores.

“We are currently focused on letting mom continue to bond with the newest additions behind the scenes, along with the rest of the pack—something vital to their success.”

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Pele is spending quality time with her new additions in their den, with caretakers keeping a watchful eye over the pack through monitoring equipment.

They have seen that the pups have been nursing regularly, a key sign that they are healthy and doing well.

After the whole painted dog pack has bonded, the zoo’s veterinary and animal care teams will conduct wellness exams on the pups, where they will also determine the sex of each new addition and give them vital vaccinations, the zoo wrote on Facebook.

“The Oklahoma City Zoo has a rich history of support for African painted dogs, both at the Zoo and in the wild,” Mr Boyd said.

“By supporting conservation programs specifically targeting African painted dogs, we can not only increase awareness about this dynamic species to our guests here at home, but also continue to learn about this remarkable species through programs strategically created to conserve African painted dogs throughout their range, helping save this species from extinction.”

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Three-year-old Pele came to the zoo in October 2021 and has lived with other African painted dogs at the facility, which is important for the species as they are very sociable.

They usually live in groups of between two and 40 and have a complex hierarchy that is typically dominated by a power couple, otherwise known as an alpha male and an alpha female, but the dynamics can constantly change due to the age and health of the pack leaders.

Since 1972, the Oklahoma City Zoo has specialised in looking after African painted dogs and currently has nine painted dogs in their care.

The African painted dog typically lives from around seven to nine years in the wild and can be found in Zimbabwe, Tanzania, Botswana and South Africa, according to the Painted Dog Conservation.