THE WORLD’S BRAVEST DOG: COLLIE-CROSS JASPER IS BRED TO HERD CATTLE BUT IS HAPPY TO ROUND UP ELEPHANTS, CHEETAHS AND WARTHOGS IN SOUTH AFRICA
Source: Mail Online (Extract)
Posted: 17 January 2021
This daring dog loves herding animals so much he even tries to round up cheetahs and elephants.
Australian cattle dog collie-cross Jasper lives with his owners in the Greater Kruger Area of South Africa.
Despite being bred to herd cattle, Jaspers instinct is so strong he happily tries his skills on some very wild local animals.
Thankfully, owner William Davis, 28, knows the limits of how far an interaction should go and calls Jasper away before the encounter could become dangerous.
Living on the edge of the Greater Kruger, William said it was common for African wildlife to emerge from the bush and pay a visit.
William said the most recent visitors were two male cheetahs who wondered in through a gate and spurred Jasper into action.
He said: ‘As a collie he is a natural herder and prides himself on chasing everything from squirrels to elephants.
‘Recently we had two male cheetahs just walk in through the open gate from the main reserve. Normally we close the gate at nights but in the day it typically stays open.
‘These were wild cheetah, living on approximately 30,000 hectares with lots of other game including the big five, lion, leopard, buffalo, elephant and rhinos.’
William, who filmed the encounter with the cheetahs, said it was hard to stop Jasper following his herding instincts, but the dog was very happy with himself afterwards.
He said: ‘He was immensely proud of himself as the cheetahs turned and went back out the gate and he trotted back to the house.
‘I was there to make sure the interaction was safe, but it can be very risky for Jasper as cheetahs are obviously a lot quicker than him, plus there were two of them.
‘However, cheetahs are not known for attacking pets and try to avoid physical confrontation as they tend to be more fragile compared to a leopard and lion.
William said it was not just cheetahs that could expect to be on the end of Jaspers Herculean herding.
He said: ‘He likes to chase and herd the warthogs off the lawn too as well as the antelope.
‘He’s not vicious and very rarely makes contact with the animals, only occasionally giving them a nip on the bum, back legs or tail to get them moving.’