Three devoted Border Collies assist in planting trees after a wildfire

Several years ago, the El Maule region of central Chile was engulfed in more than 100 different wildfires, which devastated more than a million acres of forested land. The deadliest wildfire season in the country’s history resulted in many fatalities and damage of an estimated $333 million. The animals had to go somewhere that was more secure.

It was a challenging effort to replant the forest over several acres. That is, until the project’s oddball three personnel started working on it. Das, a six-year-old Border Collie, and her two daughters, Olivia and Summer, have been taught to gallop through the cleared forests while toting unusual backpacks that scatter seeds of nearby plants. Once these seeds take root, they will help the devastated area regenerate.

It turns out that Border Collies are the ideal breed for this specific task. Running over kilometers of woodland terrain requires stamina, intellect, and speed, but it also requires the ability to focus and avoid becoming distracted by wildlife. Border Collies are less likely to harass or damage other woodland animals because they were bred to herd sheep. The canines’ owners and trainers, Francisca and Constanza Torres, assert that the canine trio likes to run and play around outside. They love it so much, said Francisca on Mother Nature Network.

Furthermore, this method is more efficient than manually scattering the seeds. These quick dogs can cover a forest at speeds of up to 18 miles per day. Humans, however, are limited to a few miles every day. These little animals may scatter close to 20 pounds of seeds, depending on the terrain. For spreading seeds, dogs are less expensive than robots or drones.

Francisca and Constanza provide the dogs with special backpacks and pack them with local seeds before sending them racing. Francisca and Constanza let the dogs run free in the devastated forest, scattering additional seeds once they had filled their bags with treats and new supplies. Naturally, restoring the ecology and encouraging species to return to the forests are the ultimate goals of all of this.

Francisca told Mother Nature Network, “We’ve noticed a lot of vegetation and wildlife returning to the charred forest!” Although the dogs already have helped restore 15 woodlands in the El Maule area, Francisca and Constanza intend to continue planting seeds with the canine crew.