Running with Wild Dogs Incredible Animal Journeys

Africa,

home to one of the most elusive and threatened animals on earth -

the wild dog.

I'm going to travel with three special dogs

as they set off on what could be the most dangerous journey of their lives.

We're going with them to see if they can make it.

Wild dogs used to be found all over Africa in their thousands,

but now there are only a handful left in a few very isolated places.

We're away. Hello!

'It's quite a mission just getting to where the wild dog families are still managing to survive.'

Thank you.

So where do we have to go to find wild dogs?

I'm in Botswana, a country in the middle of Africa.

It looks pretty small on the map, but it's actually enormous!

The dogs are in an area called the Okavango,

but I've got a long, long way to go to get there.

Three days' travelling, and we're here at last -

wild dog country.

Now, I've been lucky enough to work with wild dogs before,

and I know how hard this is going to be.

The only way we're going to be able to find them

is by working with people who live and breathe wild dogs.

One of those people is Newman,

a bushman with an almost magical understanding of how the dogs live.

The other person is Mike,

who has lived with and filmed wild dogs for over 20 years.

OK, are we ready?

He knows the individual dogs almost as well as he knows his own family.

With the help of Mike and Newman, I want to understand the wild dogs,

the dangers they face and why they have to do these incredible journeys.

Right now, Mike and Newman are concerned about three dogs in particular,

individuals who are coming up

to perhaps the most critical moments in their lives.

This is Punter.

And this is his brother, Jones.

Mike has watched these two grow into key members of the family,

looking after youngsters and leading the hunts.

But now it's time for them to move on.

Punter and Jones are about to risk death

by leaving the sanctuary of the pack to find mates of their own.

The second dog we'll be following is Chesney.

His is a sad story.

He used to be the leader of his pack, but a younger, stronger male

has taken his place and Chesney's been thrown out.

He's on his own.

Success for Chesney will be to find another pack that will take him in.

Failure will mean death.

So what's so important about being in the pack?

The wild dogs of Africa are the victims of a unique role reversal.

Out here, they are the underdogs and cats are king.

Every day they run the risk of becoming dog meat for big cats.

The only way such small animals can survive is by using teamwork,

and wild dogs are about the best example of teamwork you'll ever see,

totally supportive of each other.

It helps that the whole pack is one big extended family.

If it's your little brothers and sisters in danger,

you don't hold back.

GROWLING

Without a pack to back him up,

any wild dog soon becomes easy pickings for the big cats.

Even in a pack most dogs do carry battle scars,

often really nasty fresh wounds.

It's a tough life for a dog out here,

but at least you're part of a team.

Yet Punter and Jones are just about to leave the safety of the pack...

..and Chesney is already out there, alone.

Before we can set out, everything has to be bolted down and padded out.

All the camera gear has to be checked and rechecked

and each vehicle gets a once-over every day.

It's gonna cost you, guv!

We've no idea where the dogs are going take us.

We have to be totally self-sufficient,

ready to camp wherever the dogs lead us.

And one thing's for sure -

they're going to run us ragged, because they're always on the move.

They can cover huge distances, up to 40 kilometres - that's a full marathon -

every single day.

In fact, just finding them in the first place

needs a full-scale military-style operation.

Day one, and it's time to find the old man, Chesney.

Here's the drill. First, the eyes in the sky.

Cameraman and now pilot Mike Holding is the first link in the chain.

Somewhere down there, in the vastness of Botswana,

Chesney is probably snoozing under a tree.

But he's got a special radio collar round his neck

which transmits a regular tiny bleep.

If he's lucky, Mike can pick up Chesney's transmitter

and, by some very skilled flying, pinpoint his exact position.

It's a technique that's taken years to perfect.

BLEEPING

RAPID BEEPING

That's it.

Got him!

INDISTINCT RADIO MESSAGE

Yeah, yeah, fire away. We've got a pen and paper. 'Then it's our turn.'

As soon as Mike gives me the co-ordinates, we'll be off.

OK, copy that. Newman's happy with the directions.

We'll get going and see what we can find.

As soon as Mike's passed on the co-ordinates, he lands and races back to join us on the ground.

Right now, Chesney is about five miles away from us.

We can't hang about. He could get up and trot off at any moment.

Getting around here is a nightmare.

Probably the worst of all is trying to bash through the forest, and guess where Chesney is hanging out?

We've got to get through that!

Here we go. Heads up.

Let's just get up again and try and do it.

-We must have just passed them.

-Yeah, really strong from just back there.

-OK.

Bitten and scratched and biffed and bashed!

-OK?

-OK.

-OK.

'Now then, Mike's told me there have already been some dramatic developments in Chesney's story.

'When he was driven out of the pack, it turns out four other dogs chose to go with him.

'And not just any old dogs - four of Chesney's own kids.

'So now we're not looking for one dog, we're looking for five.'

We could be right on top of them at the moment,

but they're just so well camouflaged that they'll be just curled up in a little ball,

and we won't have a clue until we nearly run over them.

Watch your head.

That was close! Eyes peeled - they're gonna be quite close now.

Ooh, there's one. There you go.

-There we go.

-See them?

-Yes.

I can understand now

why it takes so long to blinkin' find them.

He is a beat-up old man, isn't he?

So funny when you look at his kids -

they look so fresh and clean.

He's been around a bit, he's seen a few scores...

..and hunted a few antelope.

Chesney left his group, is that right?

Well, he was actually driven out.

He was the alpha male, and these four youngsters actually went with him.

You'd think they'd stay with their mother, so why they left with Dad...

He got custody, which is quite unusual.

Cheeky Chesney!

At first sight, this looks like good news.

Five dogs altogether is surely better than one all alone.

Well, no. Actually, it's a huge headache for Chesney.

The pups aren't old enough to hunt - they haven't got the skills.

Chesney is having to hunt for them all on his own.

All they want to do is muck about.

Wild-dog rugby!

Four kids -

that's pretty tough.

You know, you've got an adult dog that's trying to feed four kids on their own.

You know, he used to be top dog,

and now no female, kicked out the troupe.

It's a hard life.

So, all he can hope for is another...

..buxom young maiden

to come knocking his way and to get a second chance

to rear some more kids, because that's what it's all about.

-If they decided not to go out to hunt, would they just stay there, or...?

-No.

-They have to move.

-They have to move?

They do have a very strong smell or scent which can attract everybody.

So they are constantly on the move even just to keep away from predators?

-Definitely. They have to move, yeah.

-You don't think that of predators.

Normally, you'd think they just rest up where they like.

-That is tough, isn't it?

-Yeah.

So they really are at the mercy of the cats.

-Yeah.

-So it's a "cat eat dog" world out there!

-That's right, yeah!

Is that an injury on its flank?

Oh, yes! One of the juveniles is badly injured, actually.

It's got a sizeable hole on its side.

It's the one that's playing quite happily at the moment,

so it just looks like a skin wound.

-You see that quite commonly, then?

-Yeah. It happens sometimes when they bash through the bushes

and then there are some stumps pointing

and then they get cut through

and sometimes they can break their legs.

Normally, the whole pack would be working together to feed these youngsters.

If Chesney had been on his own,

the pressure to join another pack would have been big enough,

but now, with four other mouths to feed, he's just got to find help.

If he can't, this can only end in tragedy.

Yesterday was brilliant.

We managed to find Chesney and we stayed with him and his pups until it got dark.

Today, I'm hoping we can track down the other key characters in this story. Remember them?

Punter and Jones, the two young, up-for-anything brothers.

Right now, Punter and Jones are still with their pack -

13 dogs in all.

But everyone's expecting them to leave at any time.

Remember, their problem is they're still living with their mum and dad,

but if they want to have kids of their own they're gonna have to make the break.

Packs are family,

and, like all families, there comes a time when you have to leave.

Young dogs like Punter and Jones

have grown up to be a great help to their parents,

successful hunters and fiercely loyal protectors of their younger siblings.

But if they're gonna have a chance of rearing their own litters, they must go.

At this time of the year, small groups of young males and young females

will be building up the courage to leave their packs

and set out on their own to try and find new mates

and start their own families.

But when will Punter and Jones actually make the break?

RADIO STATIC

Hmm, not good.

We going to try and see if we can pick up some tracks.

Yep. Well, we're going to have to rely on you now, Newman.

'Mike did get a signal from Punter and Jones's pack from the air,

'and we've raced to where they were, but too late! They've gone.'

-That's dog prints there, yeah?

-Yeah, fresh.

It's time for Newman to take over.

Newman is a bushman and has extraordinary skills.

So if we find no tracks you just have to kind of...

-guess what the dog's gonna do?

-Yes.

So you've really got to think like a dog, then?

Yeah. You have to think twice.

You see this waterhole like this?

Sometimes when the dogs come,

they come through these waterholes,

a chance for a drink or to try and cool themselves,

and then, as they walk through...

So what we're going to do is just stop here

and check around the pan

and see if we can pick up the tracks.

Yeah. OK.

-They came here. See that?

-Ah, yes.

-Came here. See what I mean?

-Yeah.

-There's another one, and there's another.

-Yeah.

What they did, they came here,

and then you can see the other tracks, you see?

Oh, yeah, you've got just a few nail tracks.

-That is amazing.

-And along there.

-It suddenly all becomes clear. Yes.

See? Stopped here.

Yeah.

So stopped, come to a stop, yeah.

Stopped here and then looked at the other dogs, and then came through here.

You see the tracks, they came through here. Just, just.

Just! Well, you might just be able to, but I'd never pick that out.

-You can see they're running here.

-It's like a whole new language.

-They're still running.

-Still running.

'The trail should take us all the way to the pack and, hopefully, Punter and Jones themselves.'

There they are, yeah. Excellent.

Newman's found the pack all right, but no Punter and Jones.

What's going on?

There's three there, got two in there. Is there another one?

-Can you see them, Mike?

-No, they're not there. This is typical.

They've been spending more and more time away from the pack,

and then one day they just won't come back, they'll be gone.

So they could have actually made the break today?

We can't have been that lucky!

We'll just have to wait and see. Why don't you guys back off and have some coffee?

OK.

This is Africa, remember.

Wild dogs are not the only animals roaming about in the forest.

-How far away were they?

-Those trees in the back.

-Yeah?

-They're right there.

-Oh, OK.

Just, if you kneel down you can see their feet walking.

We're getting packed up because the elephants are coming.

Could be bad.

I'll hang on to a cup of tea, still.

ELEPHANT TRUMPETS

That's quite close to where Mike is there, and the dogs.

There could be more.

BRANCHES SNAP

LOW RUMBLING

GROWLING

Close encounters with elephants can be pretty scary.

Thankfully, we're at a respectable distance here, but it's a good reminder

that over the next couple of weeks we're going to have to be careful.

-RADIO:

-'Steve, Steve for Mike.

-'Yeah, Steve?

-Punter and Jones are back, guys. They're back.'

Punter and Jones have returned,

and everyone seems mighty glad to see them.

So they haven't made the break today.

They're in a right mess, though, covered in mud, it looks like,

and Punter's picked up a nasty cut on his leg.

Ow, that does look sore.

And they're off. We've got to try and keep up with the pack now.

If we lose them we'll have to start all over again, Mike up in the aeroplane and everything.

But there's just no knowing where they'll go or when they'll stop.

We're on dog time now.

THUNDER RUMBLES

It's the rainy season,

and by rain we mean proper rain.

Yeah, we're going, Newman.

We're gonna get wet. We're gonna get very wet.

Oh, we'll just use the back edge of this. This'll be fine.

Nice(!)

Look at those two.

-OK?

-Yeah, good, thanks, Newman. Never been better(!)

This tarp is like, it's already formed a pool in it,

and if I tip down the edge it just pours off.

You're tipping the water on to me, aren't you?

We haven't got any covers for 'em, mate.

Let's move!

Then we'll get through the other side of it quicker.

"Africa," they said.

"Sun," they said.

-You folks OK there?

-Yeah, we're fine, yeah. We're wet but we're fine.

The rain might have slowed us down, but the dogs just lap it up.

THUNDER CRASHES

RADIO: '..Going southwest from where we left it...

'Yeah, all heading southwest... '

Following the pack at night is ten times more difficult than during the day,

and it feels like they're never going to stop.

Newman, stop for a second.

RADIO: 'OK, stop guys, stop, stop.'

DOG BARKS

-RADIO:

-'Did anyone hear that?

-Affirmative, Mike.

'It sounded pretty close.

'Yeah, it was a lion alarm bark. There must be lions about.

'Let's just keep quiet for a second.'

DOG BARKS

'Yeah, OK, that's it, there's lions.

'It's time to back off, guys.'

Wild dogs have a whole range of calls, barks and whines,

but that call is reserved for just one thing - lions.

We can't take the risk that we could distract the dogs in any way

when they need to be focusing on the lions,

so back off and make camp where we can.

Walking like this out of camp,

you really are in the middle of nowhere.

There's just this all around you.

There could be a lion 250 metres away.

But it's weird to think out here on my own,

250 kilos' worth of lion

and 80 - OK, 85 - kilos of me.

It's got teeth, it's got claws,

super-fast reflexes.

I've got...

sandals on.

Hmm...

Punter and Jones will be long gone.

They probably hunted at first light, which could have taken them literally miles away.

The dogs just never stop moving.

Well, actually, that's not totally true.

They do stop, just once a year,

for a very important reason - to make babies.

To create a den, they spruce up an old warthog or hyena burrow.

Only the dominant female gives birth,

but the entire pack clusters around to help.

Everyone chips in, bringing back food from hunts,

protecting and playing with the new arrivals.

This is how Chesney, Punter and Jones

will all have started their lives.

But staying in one place exposes the pack and the pups to terrible danger.

A stationary target is far more easy to hit than a moving one.

And they do get hit.

The dogs have one mortal enemy.

Lions seem to have an almost pathological hatred of dogs.

More than half of all wild dog youngsters are killed by lions.

The lions' ever-present threat is one good reason why Chesney,

Punter and Jones and all wild dogs must live life on the run.

Because the dogs are keeping such unsociable hours, we're having to do pretty much the same.

That means up at half past four,

off to find them before they go out on the hunt.

Thankfully, the dawn chorus here means that...

BIRDS CALL NOISILY

..you don't have to set an alarm clock. I think I'll have another five minutes.

ENGINE DOESN'T FIRE

Things are getting a bit tense this morning.

We're late leaving, there's vehicle problems, lost kit.

Unfortunately, Punter and Jones and the rest of their pack

are deep within the mopane, the woodland, we can't get to them,

so we're going to try and find Chesney and his chums.

But yeah, a bit tense, a few teddies flying around.

You know, it's hard work,

and with Mike up in the plane and us down here, communications can be quite difficult, as well.

But we'll see, we'll see what goes on.

-RADIO:

-'Come on, guys, where are you? Newman, where are you?'

We haven't seen Chesney for a few days, and he's so exposed.

It would be good to catch up with him and know he's OK.

Our vehicle, Nyati, isn't sounding too hot, though.

ENGINE MAKES SQUEAKING NOISE

Yeah. Hi, Mike. We have a problem with Nyati.

The water pump bearing has gone, and I don't think there's much we can do.

'Well, good luck with the dogs,

'and I'll see if I can source another water pump in the meantime.'

Now we've taken it all apart, we've got to put it all back together

and then go back to camp and take it all apart...

-Can you hold that for me, Steve?

-Yep.

Yep. ..and get the new bit then put it all back together again.

So, one vehicle out of commission,

but at least we've got one as spare.

Ah.

Some steering mechanism on the wheel has basically collapsed,

so I don't think this car's going anywhere.

It never rains but it pours, even in Botswana.

We'd only been going about less than a minute,

and the other vehicle now has got quite a major problem with its steering,

-so I think today is just going to be one of those days.

-RADIO:

-'Mike, Mike, Mike to Trevor.'

Mike, the kingpin bearing, it has completely shorn off.

-'Well, that's buggered that.'

-Yeah, that's affirmative, Mike.

The dogs, I think, will have to wait.

The chance of finding the pack now is gone.

A bit frustrating, but that's chasing wild dogs for you.

If it's tough on the iron and steel of our cars,

how much harder is this place on flesh and bone?

Wild dogs take a terrible beating.

Running at high speed over the bush inevitably results in cuts, tears and even broken limbs.

Couple that with the ever-present threat from other, bigger, predators

and it's easy to see why all of them carry scars

and often fresh wounds.

It's hard to imagine how they can keep on moving, even hunting,

with such terrible damage, yet they do.

These animals are unbelievably tough.

They seem to shrug off wounds that would keep a human hospitalised for weeks.

And then there are some stories of injured dogs that simply defy belief.

Some years ago, a dog called Skree broke his front leg really badly.

A bad leg break would spell death for most wild animals,

but Skree didn't die.

Two years later, he's still alive.

He can only hobble, but the pack keep food for him,

defend him against predators and, as far as they can, wait for him to catch up.

Almost unbelievable.

There's one on the swamp track.

We've bodged Nyati as best we can.

If we take it steady, she should hold out. We're back on the case.

SLOW BLEEPING

Of course, using a radio tracker is a highly skilled art,

as I've been demonstrating for the last two hours.

Slightly, slightly 11 o'clock. Still straight, yeah, straight down.

Yeah, to the left at the end of the runway.

Moving that way. I think it's getting stronger.

I think they're still coming towards us.

Twelve o'clock to where we are, sorry. About three o'clock.

But now, finally, it looked like I was actually almost,

well, possibly, getting somewhere.

The radio tracker's telling me Punter and Jones are very close.

They're actually coming right down the road, it feels like.

It's kind of almost scary, cos it's just like getting closer and closer and closer.

Even though I know it's just Punter!

They're so quiet that they could go streaming past us

in these mopane trees and I wouldn't see them at all.

Thankfully, Newman decided he'd had enough of technology

and took matters into his own hands.

-What did he see?

-I don't know.

It's...

There they are. There they are!

How did he know?

How DID he know?

Look!

That's, er...

Right, well, obviously, Punter and Jones still haven't made the break,

because here they are. That's Jones...

and Punter's in the pack somewhere,

both still firmly part of the scenery.

We came to find out if Punter and Jones had made the break,

but we've gate-crashed something completely different.

The dogs aren't just trotting around aimlessly.

This is actually the first stage of a hunt.

Looks like the whole pack's here.

Nice fresh early start out on the hunt.

Still very slow at the moment, so we can keep with them,

but they'll suddenly kick into a high gear and they'll be gone

and we'll really have to work hard to keep up with them.

The pack is spreading out, everyone looking.

If they get a whiff of an impala, it could all explode into action.

Impala over there. Yep.

Yes, yes.

There's some impalas, yeah.

They're going to move, Steve.

Two dogs here.

One right behind you, Steve.

They're moving again.

As Newman predicted, with the sun on their backs

those impala probably can't see them, because it's so... Turn round there you can't see anything.

Go on, turn round there, have a look.

That's Jones there. He's seen something.

There's Punter.

Jones is starting to stalk.

You can see the movement. You'll see the movement.

They've seen them. They're going, they're going!

-OK, guys.

-They're running.

Oh, look at them go! The impala are running. The dogs are...

Oh, yeah, they're all on it now.

Ooh, he's going to make it to the trees. Still running, yeah.

This one, this one here. There's one coming.

Yes. Yeah, yep, OK.

Oh, he's catching, he's catching.

Look at him go! That is incredible, the speed of that dog!

The youngsters don't know what to do, do they?

No.

-They missed.

-Yes, yeah. Into the mopane, yeah.

The dogs are all split up now, they've gone all directions.

They're some way behind us over there, two of the dogs,

or three or four, in fact,

still coming here now, piling into these trees after the impala. Wow!

Absolutely flat out.

That is such a rare sight to see.

To see wild dogs actually on the hunt is really, really, really rare.

-Have they made a kill?

-Yeah, they've made a kill.

That's amazing.

This is a baby, baby impala, about eight months or nine months old.

Very nervous still.

-Why is that? What are they worried about?

-Lions, hyenas, leopards.

-Do the wild dogs lose a lot of their prey, then?

-Yeah.

Most of the time, yeah.

That's why when they eat, you know, they have to eat as fast as they can.

Yeah.

-They haven't left much for the vultures.

-No.

I can't see Punter or Jones at the moment.

There's Jones! He's had some food.

But look at Punter's gut! He's like a beer barrel.

You can see why it'll be difficult for them to make the break,

cos there's 13 dogs in this pack

and pretty much every time they hunt they get food.

That was a pretty incredible morning, to see our dogs actually on the hunt.

You can understand now why being in a pack makes so much sense.

It was just chaos. You had the lead dogs

just running straight into the impala, scattering them,

you had the youngsters going, "This is great, this is great!"

Not knowing what they're doing at all.

Chaos reigned supreme.

You can really see the whole strategy of the wild dog,

which is just shock-and-awe tactics. That's what it is.

It's just get in there and blitz the place.

Everything in their wake was just running, running, running.

Spectacular!

Until recently, wild dogs were systematically hunted down by man.

There used to be tens of thousands.

Now only tiny populations remain in a few wild places.

The new bits have arrived to fix the cars,

but Mike's got to fly into town to get them, so we can't go out after the dogs today.

But Newman thinks this is a great opportunity to introduce me to the the dogs' number one enemy.

He's decided to show me lions - on foot.

If anything happens,

if we're going to come across the lions and then they charge,

nobody runs, everybody stands still.

I will be in the front anyway, so I will do something to try and stop the animal from charging.

Very quiet when we track.

Don't step on dead branches or leaves,

-just quietly, gently walking, and keep your eyes open.

-OK.

-And you'll look after us.

-Yeah. Sure.

-Good.

How nervous are they of having people track them?

Will they move away? Will they...?

Yeah, they will run away,

unless if you corner them somewhere, if you do corner them, yes,

they might get a little bit more,

a little bit irritated

and they will charge, but most of the time they go.

Do you want them to know that you're coming or not?

No, no, no, we want to see them and to see him before he sees us.

That's the one main thing.

Just... You can see where he stopped here.

Yeah.

He stretched big.

Oh, yes, yeah.

Do you get nervous when stalking lions?

-No. I've been charged quite a lot.

-You've been charged quite a lot?

-Yeah, but I've managed to scare them off.

-And how do you do that?

Well, the most important thing to do

is you have to respect the animals, so we do respect the lions,

we don't fight with the lions.

If we find them with a kill, we don't chase them, but there are some times

where we chase them and try and get a piece and then leave the rest for them.

-You'd chase lions off a kill?

-Yeah.

You pretend, you raise your hands,

you shout, clap your hands, bang the sticks together.

And this is obviously without a gun, this is just sticks and spears.

Yeah, sticks and spears, but you don't have to use them.

You just bang them together and then go on and charge them.

And how many? 15, 20 of you?

Well, no, two, three. I mean, I did it myself with my younger brother.

-How old were you?

-I was ten.

You chased lions off a kill when you were ten years old

-with your younger brother?

-Yeah. You pretend yourself big.

-Yes.

-Or you take a stick.

Of course, they can see your height, but if you put something big there...

-You're much bigger.

-You are much bigger,

and then you stare at these things and then chase them and they go.

Then...you run.

-And you did this when you were that young?

-Oh, yeah. Yeah, yeah.

And when you chased them off the kill -

why would you chase lions off a kill?

Well, I mean, if we need fresh meat.

-Oh, so you take some of theirs?

-Yeah, some of their meat.

They must have just been sat watching you, then, when one of you was butchering...

From like in those bushes there.

That's amazing! You take your little bit...

You take your little piece then go, then they come back.

That is incredible.

They look at you and say, "Naughty you,

"never come back again"!

-As long as you leave them something, I suppose.

-That's right.

-Mind you, you think you're invincible when you're ten years old, don't you?

-Oh, yeah.

How close can we get to them?

You see there, the termite mound?

We're gonna try and get there.

That's very close.

-We'll see how they react, anyway.

-OK.

I trust you, Newman.

The way lions react to wild dogs is hard to understand.

They literally go out of their way to attack and kill them.

The dogs appear to present little or no direct threat to the lions,

so why should the lions behave in such an apparently unreasonably violent way?

Some experts say it's because the dogs are actually more successful hunters than the lions,

so the lions may see them as a threat to their food supply.

But they generally hunt different prey species.

It's hard to understand what lies behind the lions' ongoing vendetta

against an animal around a tenth its size.

It looks almost pathological.

But whenever dogs and lions meet,

the dogs certainly end up with the rough end of the deal.

Ah, yes, he's seen us.

Another one who's seen us.

They're very relaxed still.

They don't mind humans being close to them?

Well, it's another different... It's different.

Yeah.

That was great, we could definitely see them.

Mike's back, and he's got all the bits we need to fix the cars.

Chesney, Punter and Jones are out there somewhere.

Tomorrow we must meet up.

Mike's picked up Chesney's signal. But who will be with him?

Right, Newman. 'The collars are a godsend,

'but they don't tell us what we really need to know.

'Is Chesney OK? How are the pups getting on?

'Are they still alive? You just never know.'

Hang on, Newman, big hole.

Oh, yeah, there we go. Left, left, left.

Can see dogs.

You can smell them, actually.

Dog on the left, dogs all around us.

OK.

There they are, there they are. Newman, straight ahead.

-Have you seen them?

-Yeah, I can see them.

Well, how many dogs have we got?

And Chesney, one... Four.

'But who's that adult? That's not Chesney.'

How many can you see, Newman?

-Those are three youngsters by the pool, are they?

-Yeah, yeah.

So all the four youngsters are still here, which is good.

They're with Chesney and another adult.

'I thought Chesney's best chance was to try and join a new pack, but maybe not.

'Perhaps there's another way. Perhaps he's going to build a new pack around him,

'and it does look like that's started.

'There are two new adults with the pups,

'so Chesney has got some serious backup at last.

-'But where is he?'

-Steve?

-Yeah?

-He might be on the other side.

Can you hear those there?

Oh, yes.

'There he is.

'Ooh, that doesn't look good, that back leg.'

Chesney, what have you done?

Yeah, he is definitely a little bit lame on that leg, but he's got a big, full belly.

He's holding it very straight, actually.

And this other adult...

'We now have a mini-pack of seven.

'Unfortunately, the newcomers are both males, but it's a great start.

'And it couldn't have come at a better time.

'We have to try and keep a careful watch on Chesney.

'That back leg - it could mean that he can't hunt,

'and without his hunting skills the mini-pack could be in trouble.'

Back on the trail of Punter and Jones.

-RADIO:

-'We've got impala facing to the north.'

-And it's all action.

'The dogs are hunting. Go, go, go. We're going to lose them.'

Hold tight, now.

-RADIO:

-'The dogs are stalking. They're stalking impala.

'Come on, guys, where are you?

'They're still hunting. They're going northwest. They've slowed down now.'

RADIO MESSAGE INDISTINCT

'Come on, guys, where are you? Newman, where are you?

'Punter's breaking, he's breaking. Newman, where are you?'

The case is in. OK, that will do.

'Punter's right on his tail. He's gonna get him, he's gonna get him.'

'Punter's got an impala. He's got an impala.'

They've only just killed, just minutes ago,

but there's an awful lot of interested spectators already.

I'm beginning to have my doubts about Punter and Jones,

if they're really are going to make the break this year,

cos here they are again, still with the pack,

leading the hunt, defending the kill.

There's Punter on hyena duty.

Whoa! He's starving!

Surprise attack!

Ooh, and it's worked!

He's got away with it.

Not again, though.

Almost looks like they're ignoring the hyena,

but this one's really pushing his luck.

They're all in there.

He won't try that again in a hurry.

In amongst all the mayhem,

Newman's noticed one subtle change that could be of huge importance.

The dominant female's behaviour's slightly unusual.

The other dogs are treating her a little bit differently,

and she's a tiny bit more rounded than just a good meal.

Steve, the female - she's pregnant.

If that's true, Punter and Jones's bid for stardom is over.

The minute the dominant female becomes pregnant,

the pack closes ranks.

Every single dog will pull together to support her.

No-one leaves the pack.

It looks like it's the end of Punter and Jones's chance to make the break.

For this year at least, the window of opportunity just shut.

I've got no idea what's up with Chesney,

what with that injured back leg.

Once again, that small pack's very survival seems to be hanging by a thread.

We've got to track him down.

What a dog!

The leg's fine, and it's clearly not bothered him,

because the new mini-pack has hunted and killed successfully

and all the pups are still going strong.

I don't know how he keeps doing it. He's an absolute miracle.

Despite that injury, they're all well fed again this morning.

They've all got full bellies, they're all doing really well.

It's just great to see.

But in fact, just days after we left Botswana,

we got even better news.

Two females had also joined Chesney's new team,

bringing the pack strength up to nine

and giving Chesney the chance to produce babies later in the year.

What an amazing animal!

Battered, bruised, kicked out of his pack,

this old warrior never gave up.

He's battled on through, and in the end it looks like he's gonna make it.

It's time to leave this beautiful part of Africa.

There are so few wild dogs left every life is precious,

so being able to run with Chesney, Punter and Jones

has been very, very special.

My mission is over,

but, as with all the animals in Incredible Journeys,

these wild dogs are still writing their own stories.

Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd - 2006

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