Anti-poaching dog Killer awarded medal for hard work

Who's a good boy? Killer, the anti-poaching canine, that's who - and the six-year-old Belgian Malinois has the medal to prove it.

Killer, who works with his handler (who can't be named) in the Kruger National Park, was awarded the People's Dispensary for Sick Animals (PDSA) Gold Medal this month for his work in dealing with rhino poaching in the park.

The gold medal on a blue ribbon is the highest honour that can be given to "civilian" dogs and the latest in a string of accolades for Killer.

Last year, his "testimony" was used in a Nelspruit court to convict two Mozambican men of killing a rhino and trying to dehorn another.

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The judge ruled that Killer's sense of smell was so accurate that there was no chance that he had linked the wrong men to the animal's carcass.

This was the 117th time that Killer's nose had led to the arrest of suspected poachers in the park.

Killer was honoured just 10 days before Environmental Affairs Minister Edna Molewa announced that 826 rhino had been poached in the Kruger in 2015, one less than the year before, but more than the 606 in 2013. Molewa confirmed that 1175 rhino were killed in South Africa in 2015, compared with 1215 in 2014.

Anti-poaching dog trainer Henry Holsthyzen said if it were not for pooches like Killer, the rhino death toll would be much higher and fewer poachers would be nabbed.

"We would, maybe, see hundreds more rhino killed," he said.

In announcing Killer as the PDSA Gold Medal winner, actor, comedian and animal welfare advocate Ricky Gervais said: "Rhinos are wonderful creatures killed in their hundreds by poachers, but Killer and his colleagues are fighting back. And it's working - he's helped capture dozens of poachers thanks to his amazing courage and dedication. Thank you. Good boy. Good boy. Yes, you are."

Holsthyzen said he was proud of Killer, one of the first dogs introduced to the Kruger National Park in 2010. "He's the 24th recipient of the award worldwide. It's an elite group to belong to. I'm very proud of him and his handler."