Depending on which Wild in Africa team member you ask, International Dog Day is the best day of the year! If we’re being fair, it ties with International Cat Day, and because we gave that day full acknowledgement, we have to do the same here. 

It is the day of the dog – (wo)man’s best friend, the purest of souls, those furry friends we are lucky enough to share our lives with.

Let us celebrate our loyal family members and pay full respect to good boys and goodest girls the world over! Especially, the wild kind. 

Our beloved canine’s hardcore pack hunting cousins. In fact, distant cousins. There are a number of notable differences between the domestic pups we allow into our homes (and on our beds, am I right?) and the wild painted dogs that roam the savannah as some of the most successful predators out there. 

For a start, wild dogs only have four toes on their front paws, and they have super long legs and run at speeds reaching 70km/h. They have huge, round ears that stand upright and rotate like satellites, helping them to be as alert as possible out in the wild where they are vulnerable to more powerful predators, like lion, hyena, and leopard. 

Fun facts are, well, fun, but what we really need to be drawing attention to on a day like today is the very real threat faced by wild dogs across Africa. While they are considered some of the most successful hunters of the savanna, killing 80% of the targets they attack, wild dogs crave large home ranges and often cross onto privately owned farms that border wilderness areas. Livestock is at risk of being killed and eaten by roaming wild dogs, which puts a target on the dogs backs, and all too often they are killed for their “crimes”. 

How can you show your love and support for the wilder versions of your furry BFF? By contributing towards amazing organisations like Wild Tomorrow Fund, which is one of the conservation charities we first partnered up with. 

A big part of their work is protecting more and more wilderness areas. Expanding the areas that wildlife has to roam is incredibly important if species like wild dogs are going to have the space they need in an ever-shrinking savannah. 

Check out our beautiful South African Tiger’s Eye charity bracelet with Africa pendant we’ve made in honour of Wild Tomorrow Fund. For every bracelet bought, 50% of the retail price is donated to this incredible organisation to help them do the work. 

If we ever needed an excuse to talk about dogs, this is it. We took it, can you blame us? No creature is more deserving of a full calendar day!

Written by Chloe Cooper

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