I’m delighted to introduce you to one of our newest recruits.
He’s called Ronnie, an adorable two-year-old pup who has a really important job protecting our Hauraki Gulf’s precious pest-free islands. Ronnie recently graduated from the national Conservation Dog Programme with full certification proving he has what it takes to sniff out rats and mice in Auckland’s most sensitive native environments. Ronnie has been working with Auckland Council’s Biosecurity Advisor Rochelle and together they are doing great work for our region.
A typical day for Ronnie can include inspecting vehicles and gear at the ferries destined for Aotea/Great Barrier or Rakino or patrolling Sandspit and checking out visitors heading to Kawau Island. His mission? To stop stowaway rodents from sneaking onto these ecologically sensitive islands. Other days he’s based on the islands themselves conducting routine checks.
Dogs like Ronnie play a hugely important role to protect and restore our island ecosystems. They are fast, precise and natural-born conservationists in fur coats.
Here’s to Ronnie and his friends along with their handlers who work hard every day keeping our islands pest free. They are funded from our Natural Environment Targeted rate, so thanks to you too for contributing to this important work.
Desley Simpson, Deputy Mayor of Auckland
www.desleysimpson.co.nz
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