Wild dogs in Zambia | J.Goetz

Wild dog

Lycaon pictus

Behavior and diet

The wild dog’s latin name, Lycaon pictus, means painted wolf, and with the multicolored spots on its coat, the wild dog does look painted. The wild dog is on the endangered animals list and it estimated that between 2500 and 5000 remain. Wild dogs live in packs with an alpha male and an alpha female, and normally only the alpha pair are allowed to mate and reproduce. Wild dogs are carnivores that work together to bring down animals as large as antelope and even young wildebeest and zebra. Wild dogs are most active between dusk and dawn and tend to rest during the day. The gestation period for females is around 70 days, with 2 to 10 pups being the average litter size.