Gone to the dogs

“We want to see wild dog.”

It’s a bold request, given that the species is one of the rarest in the world, with a estimated global population of around 6 600. But this was exactly what we asked for on the drive from the airstrip to the DumaTau Camp in the Linyanti Wildlife Reserve in the Okavango Delta — and in true Botswana style our wish was granted.

Our vehicle rumbled along as afternoon became evening. We didn’t stop for much, and there was plenty to stop for, but the goal was to get to the watering hole the pack had last been seen at.

Eventually we got there. The pack was basking in the late sun. They put on a show not long after.

Did you know that wild dog make a chirping sound, pretty much like a loud household bird? And that they always — always — greet each other in the mornings and evenings before the day begins or before a hunt?

As we made our way back to camp – with explorer-themed tented rooms and a communal area overlooking a river — our hearts were full and our wish granted. A rare sighting of a leopard with a kill made it that much more spectacular.

Clearly, in the Delta, you get what you ask for – and even a bit extra.