Rescued – Asiatic Golden Jackal

Yesterday an infant Asiatic golden jackal (Canis aureus) was brought into WFFT after being found alone walking through an urban area north of the city of Bangkok. Due to his young age and the location he was found some concerned locals captured him and brought him to the WFFT Wildlife Rescue Centre. We suspect that this little male is a dumped unwanted pet, due to his tameness. This species is particularly fearful of humans and his behavior indicates that is somewhat humanized. He was kept by the people that captured for one week, until the could find a solution, they brought him to WFFT yesterday.

The Asiatic golden jackal is listed as Least Concern (LC) by the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Over its entire range, except in protected areas like National Parks and Sanctuaries, the jackal population is steadily declining. Traditional land use practices, like livestock rearing and dry farming that were conducive to the survival of jackals and other wildlife, are being steadily replaced by industrialization and intensive agriculture; wilderness areas and rural landscapes are being rapidly urbanized. Jackal populations adapt to some extent to this change and may persist for a while, but eventually disappear from such areas like other wildlife.

This little one was given the name ‘John’ by the people that found him, so we will continue to call him John. Initial health checks indicate that he is healthy, and he has a very good appetite. For now, he is being kept in the WFFT Wildlife Hospital, where he can be properly observed by the WFFT Vet Team. We will keep you posted on his progress.