Australian family rescues ‘puppy’ – turns out to be a rare purebred dingo

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When Jane Guiney from Wandiligong, Victoria, Australia spotted a tiny animal in her backyard, was unsure what it might be. After she approached the mysterious creature, Jane thought it’s a puppy. Assuming the little one was most likely dropped by an animal of prey, the woman took him inside, to look after him.

“l woke up and went outside and heard a whimpering behind the house,” Jane told The Dodo. “l looked up to the back of the house and saw a small animal. l made a grab for him as he was falling and he pretty much just cuddled in my arms. l still thought he may have been a fox as his face was pointy, but he was robust like a puppy.”

However, after a few days she she was quite surprised to find out the pup she rescued it’s actually a rare wild dingo. Since it was weekend when found the pup, Jane took care of him and fed him. Then first thing on Monday, she went straight to the local vet in her attempt to solve the mystery. The vet soon realized it’s not a regular puppy they had to deal with so the clinic reached Australian Dingo Foundation – a sanctuary that wants to conserve the vulnerable dingo species.

 

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Meet Wandi. He is our newest addition to our DDC family and what a story he has. Wandi was found alone as a 4-5 week old cub on a private property in Victoria’s eastern highlands. He was brought to DDC by WIRES, where we have taken him under our care pending DNA results for dingo purity. After weeks of anxious waiting, results from UNSW’s genetics lab revealed Wandi is a 100% PURE VICTORIAN HIGHLANDS DINGO. He is living proof that the dingo is still prevailing in its purest form in Victoria. Wandi will become part of our breeding program, adding new genes to increase strength and diversity of our captive insurance population of pure dingoes we have at our sanctuary. We believe Wandi was stolen by an eagle and dropped – he had sustained wounds on his back, and his nails were worn down suggesting he had travelled far on foot before being found. You can follow Wandi @wandi_dingo to watch him grow ❤️ ⬇️Follow our other socials ⬇️ @wandi_dingo @pumbahthedingo @dingowhiskers 🐶 #dingo #dingoesofinstagram #canisdingo #savethedingo #alpinedingo #conservation #rewilding #coexistence #creatingawareness #savingspecies #protectingnature #threatenedspecies #wildlifeconservation #australiannative #australianwildlife #natureinspires #naturelovers #melbswest #dyobmelbourne #melbournenotes #visitmelbourne #meltoncitymuchmore #wandervictoria #animalencounter #puppylove #notforprofit

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It’s when they found out the rescue “puppy” is actually a 5-week-old, purebred dingo. The miracle pup, later named Wandi was taken to the sanctuary, where he was paired with another dingo offspring of his age. Given he’s 100% purebred, Lyn Watson, director of the Australian Dingo Foundation thinks Wandi would became an important part of their breeding program.

Nevertheless, Wandi acts just like a little puppy who loves to play all they round. “He was a real little character straight away,” Kevin Newman, a volunteer with the Australian Dingo Foundation, told The Dodo. “He was very friendly with people and would sink his sharp little teeth into your arm no matter who you were. Whilst he is wild and always will be, he has become quite happy here and he likes the people that are caring for him.”

Native to Australia, dingos had their numbers dramatically reduced over the last years, due to hunting and habitat loss. The International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources has listed dingos as a vulnerable species.

h/t: thedodo | Instagram | foxnews

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