Herding has begun!

Several years of training have culminated in the first EVER group livestock herd in Botswana~! The leadership of Eretsha Village have put their support behind our herding initiative and over 80% of the livestock from more than 20 herds will be brought together into a communal herd of over 1,000 animals for cooperative management. A Community Committee, made up of 10 villagers and our Pride in Our Prides staff, will make decisions about herding practices and devise a rotational grazing plan to maximize restorative ecological principles. This herd will be looked after by 6 herders that were hired from the Eretsha Community who have been trained and certified through the our herder training program.

Our herders will not only look after the livestock, but monitor rangeland health, treat livestock injuries and disease as well as mitigate conflict with predators. The herders will spend their days in the field, building a lion-proof livestock enclosure that can be moved throughout the grazing lands to keep the herd close to the best grazing areas.

The herding program could not have come at a better time. With predicted poor rains this year, livestock will be desperately moving to closer contact with lions and conflict will be rife. Our herders will provide an added layer of protection that will be a tremendous example for neighboring communities.

Thank you National Geographic’s Big Cats Initiative, Lion Recovery Fund, Great Plains Foundation, CIRAD, Natural Selection Conservation Fund, Okavango Research Institute and Herding 4 Health for providing support for this program!