AUSTRALIAN DINGO
UPDATE 07/03/23
BIO
How did an Australian Dingo come to be in Florida…AND in rescue? It’s simple…people! Six pups were sent from a Dingo Recovery program to the United States. Two ended up with a couple in Florida. The man had come from Australia and wanted some of his homeland it seems. Dingoes are the wild dog of Australia like the wolf or coyote and are generally treated as a “nuisance” animal. Highly intelligent, they grow to only about 45 lbs.
They allowed the pups to breed and then had problems with law enforcement due to not following captive wildlife laws. Dingoes require Class III FWC permits and special containment in Florida. Well a lot happened in their lives in that next year and the short of it is that another rescuer got a call that six dingoes needed placement. Shy Wolf Sanctuary had originally planned on taking two but had since filled our habitats, mostly with coyotes. So a rescuer from NC came down and picked them up. That’s when she found out one of the girls was pregnant. Six pups were born but only three survived.
The original home that was lined up for this very special girl fell through and Deanna (volunteer & Board of Directors member) was called to see if she would personally adopt the pup. While not activiely seeking a pup, and quite happy with her existing pack, she saw the benefits to having a different canine species as an ambassador to the sanctuary. It was especially enticing since the pup would be more likely to WANT to go to events, unlike our other animals.
Lola has made herself at home wherever she goes, as the pictures show, and is even showing an aptitude for Search and Rescue (SAR) training. Who knows? Shy Wolf Sanctuary may be the first to have a certified SAR Dingo ready to respond at the drop of a hat! In the meantime she loves playing with her coyote friend Morgan and climbing up onto anything she can possibly climb onto…including your head if you sit close enough to her.
2016: Lola did it! She is officially certified in Florida as a SAR canine volunteer for human remains. Lola and her handler, Shy Wolf Sanctuary President, Deanna Deppen, were deployed on a mission their first week.
Lola was officially certified in Human Remains Detection through Florida Law Enforcement K9 Association (FLECA) and deployed on a search the first week after. She’s quite probably the first-ever CGC and HRD certified Australian Dingo!
2018: Lola continues to train in HRD and needs to retake certification exams every 1-2 years. We started Lola down this path to keep her busy and give her something to challenge her mind. Both have been very successful!
Learn about Lola’s certification.
Listen to Lola trill