Wildlife Detection Dog Henry Named Animal of the Year by the International Fund for Animal Welfare at a Ceremony in London
10-year-old Springer Spaniel Henry, well-known to Hen Harrier Action supporters as the dog that fronted our Detection Dog Fundraising Appeal, has been recognised in a prestigious international award ceremony.
At this week’s 25th Animal Action Awards, created by the International Fund for Animal Welfare to shine a spotlight on the incredible rescue and conservation work done around the world, Henry was awarded the title of Animal of the Year. As IFAW noted, Henry is “playing a key role in uncovering evidence of illegal killings of birds of prey. Providing crucial support to investigations and prosecutions, Henry is a valuable ally in protecting some of Britain’s most threatened species. “
Henry is a 'superdog', says Michaela Strachan
Michaela Strachan, who presented the awards on Thursday night, was quick to praise trainer Louise Wilson, Managing Director of Conservation K9 Consultancy, for her work in developing Henry’s skills as a wildlife crime detection dog, describing Henry as a ‘superdog’.
“To be able to train a dog like Henry to do the work that he does needs an enormous amount of time, patience, dedication and commitment,” she told the BBC.
“The two of them together are a formidable team for wildlife protection.“
Helping Track Down Wildlife Criminals
Describing Henry’s background, Louise told the BBC that he was rejected from five homes for his energetic nature, before being rescued at eight months old, and trained as a wildlife protection dog.
Now Henry can detect seven scents, ranging from birds of prey to hedgehogs, helping police track down those involved in wildlife crime. Henry can locate bird carcasses and even small monitoring tags removed from birds, and his nose has helped police target criminals who kill or steal birds of prey. Although not a police dog, he has been invaluable to the National Wildlife Crime Unit (NWCU) in their work protecting birds of prey.
As well as working with police, Henry also helps conservationists with “ecological monitoring”, including for pine martens, hedgehogs, otters and water voles.
Hen Harrier Action Supporters Help Train & Deploy Dogs Like Henry
At the awards ceremony, as shown in the picture above with Michaela Strachan, Henry can be seen sporting a Hen Harrier Action patch on his harness. That is because, after announcing an Appeal at the charity’s Skydancer Day live broadcast and meeting detection dog Gem and handler Kevin alongside DI Mark Harrison from the NWCU, supporters responded magnificently to raise over £11,000 in less than 20 days. These funds are going directly to the training and deployment of dogs like Henry and Gem in the field, working with the NCWU and multi-agency teams, to recover illegally killed birds of prey and their satellite tags.
So it is especially heartening to see the marvellous work of Louise, Henry and the Conservation K9 Consultancy team recognised in this way, at an international awards ceremony.