Interesting Facts on the African Wild Dog

The African wild dog (Lycaon pictus), also known as African hunting dog, Cape hunting dog or painted dog, belongs to the Canidae family. This species once widely roamed the plains and woodlands of sub-Saharan Africa. In the last century, their numbers have dwindled, and they are now mostly found in protected areas of East and South Africa. The World Conservation Union (IUCN) lists the African wild dog as threatened by extinction.

  1. Physical Characteristics

    • As their name implies, painted dogs have a colorful coat of black, tan and white that acts like a thumbprint--no two coat patterns are identical. They have a black muzzle and a black line running down the middle of their forehead. They have large, rounded ears that give them excellent hearing ability and help to keep them cool in the desert. They also use their ears to communicate by moving them to signal what direction to take or what to do next.

      They are similar in size and shape as the typical medium to large domestic dog breeds. Unlike domestic dogs, African wild dogs only have four instead of five toes on their front feet.

    Social Organization

    • African wild dogs are pack-oriented animals that live, hunt and travel together. They can usually be found in packs of five to 20 dogs, composed of a dominant male and female, non-dominant adults and young offspring.

      They are highly social animals and are remarkable for their food sharing behavior. Adults are known to eat meat from the kill and head back to their den to regurgitate food for young pups and their babysitters, as well as injured or sick pack members. When pups are old enough to tag along in the hunt, they are given first priority to the kill, with even the dominant adults giving way.

      Another fact about these animals is how they form new packs. In most social mammals, males leave the pack to form new ones. But with African wild dogs, male dogs normally stay with the pack they were born into. It is the female dogs, usually sisters, who leave the pack as a group and join other packs to form new ones.

    Hunting Behavior

    • African wild dogs work cooperatively with the rest of the pack to chase and catch prey. They mostly hunt medium-sized antelope, but are also known to go after larger animals like zebras or greater kudu, or smaller ones like hares and rodents. They are constantly moving in search for food and may travel up to 31 miles in a day.

      The hunt begins with a greeting ceremony that rallies the pack members and gets them energized to go on the hunt. They engage in play fighting and licking each other’s mouths while making twittering sounds of excitement as they gear up for the hunt.

      Once on the hunt, they communicate with each other through squeaky, high-pitched sounds or by using their ears to point which direction they will go. They are fast runners that can go up to 37 mph for three miles in pursuit of prey. Once they have caught their prey, they eat quickly before competitors like hyenas, vultures or lions move in.

    Reproduction and Rearing of Offspring

    • The dominant male and female, called the alpha pair, are monogamous and are the only ones allowed to breed. Other adults act in a supporting role to take care of the young. The alpha female comes into season only once a year. She carries the pups for 60 to 80 days and gives birth to litters of two to 19 pups. The period from whelping to weaning is the only time that the pack settles in to a den and stays put for more than a few days.

    Threats to Survival

    • As of 2010, African wild dogs are on the verge of extinction, largely due to human encroachment. These painted dogs that once were found across most of Africa find themselves with less room to roam. Urbanization and land clearing reduces the numbers of the animals that they prey upon, and the dogs have at times been known to go after livestock. The wild dogs are regarded by many as pests and are poisoned, shot and snared by farmers. Increasing contact with humans means exposure to diseases from domestic animals like distemper and rabies.