Wild dogs movie4/3/2023 ![]() ![]() But more than narrating a simple story, Mike and TJ have set out to make a difference in this portrayal of Newky’s life. It is a re-creation of the true story of an African wild dog that manages to encapsulate all the joys, dangers and tragedies of being a wild dog in an increasingly perilous world. We’ve stuck with the tale of Newky’s life, because it is such a fantastic story.”Ī 50-minute blue chip documentary, “A Wild Dog’s Story” for the BBC’s ‘Natural World’ series is the result. In this film we’ve tried to recreate the life of Newky and what he endured as faithfully as we possibly could. This was the film story-line we were looking for. I remember we were sitting around the campfire and all the hairs on the back of my neck stood up, because it was just such a powerful story. Mike recalls, “I sat down with Tico one evening and said “if you had to pick one dog you’ve known, who epitomised all of the challenges and difficulties that a wild dog might go through, who’d it be? And without hesitation he said ‘Newky’ and began to tell me the story of Newky’s life. While filming the Santawani pack for various international natural history programmes, Mike and TJ decided to embark on their own major documentary film project, to help to dispel the myths which surround the African Wild Dog and to bring to light some of the issues which threaten this critically endangered species. J.Weldon ‘Tico’ McNutt, who has been studying several packs in the area for the past eleven years. For the last 5 years he and film producer Tania Jenkins (better known as ‘TJ’) have been regular visitors, constantly renewing and cementing their ties with the resident wild dogs and local wild dog scientist, Dr. Kenyan born wildlife cameraman Mike Holding first came to Santawani 20 years ago. Part of the few viable remaining wild dog populations left in Africa, the Santawani pack is soon to become one of the most well-known. At home among the woodlands and floodplains is an African Wild Dog pack - fourteen adults and a bundle of boisterous pups. There are dappled camelthorn woodlands, mantles of wild sage and patchwork islands of kigelia trees, knob-thorns and the beautiful twisted shapes of the loncocarpus capassa tree. On the eastern fringes of the Okavango Delta in Botswana, spreads a vast area of coarse yellow grass, the variegated greens and browns of mopane forest, and grey dusty sand. Above all, it is an emotionally powerful, true story, in which, through Newky’s remarkable life, we learn of the challenges facing one of the worlds most endangered and fascinating social mammals. This is a tale of struggle, endurance and triumph, and of one dog’s extraordinary spirit to win through against almost impossible odds. That close relationship allowed them unprecedented access to the dog’s daily lives, and the result is some of the most intimate footage of wild dog behaviour ever filmed. Several years of experience of filming African wild dogs in Botswana, and 3 years spent with the remaining descendants of Newky’s pack, resulted in the filmmakers achieving a unique, personal bond with this particular group of wild dogs. Before then, he must not only find another wild dog pack, but also compete for acceptance and overthrow the alpha male. Newky remains undaunted, and in the end, succeeds in fathering a new generation of wild dogs. Newky at last finds a mate, another lone survivor of the epidemic, only to endure tragedy once again when she is killed by a farmer’s bullet. Alone, he is forced to endure dangers that normally would be met by a strong, coherent pack, as he searches for months trying to find others of his own kind. In a tragic twist of fate, Newky’s entire pack is wiped out by a mysterious disease epidemic. Set against the spectacular wilderness of Botswana’s Okavango delta, this poignant tale follows Newky’s life from the dangers and joys of puppy-hood, through the loss of his siblings in tense encounters with lions, and into the trials of adulthood.īut even being a strong adult dog brings a life of danger, hardship and conflict. ![]() Through Tico's personal recollections, we follow the dramatic account of Newky's life, in a moving, true story that is both heartbreaking and important to understanding the challenges wild dogs face as a species. Now, this emotive natural history film brings Newky’s story back to life, in a faithful and detailed recreation of his experiences. "Newky” was an African Wild Dog, whose exceptional life was scientifically documented over a period of five years by wild dog researcher Dr.J. The true story of an African Wild Dog’s remarkable life. ![]()
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