Mongolian Bankhar Dog Project

18/06/2024

Kilgore's photo was published in a magazine , so that makes him the most famous of our Bankhars. We have a bunch of photos of him from the magazine photo shoot, so we decided to publish them every Tuesday. Enjoy looking at this handsome fella!

15/06/2024

6. Grey
Born in 2020 at our facility, Grey is our in-house trainer. During the 6 months before the puppies are given to the herders in the countryside, they undergo pre-placement training to get used to the daily regime of following the herd to the pasture. Our caretaker at the facility does this training but increasingly we rely on Grey to teach the new pups the ways of the Livestock Guardian Dog trade. She was selected because she showed the best LGD behavior in her puppyhood, staying next to the sheep and goats all the time. Plus, as a sweet mom she can teach her puppies.
Grey refers to the color of her identification collar at birth.

11/06/2024

Kilgore's photo was published in a magazine , so that makes him the most famous of our Bankhars. We have a bunch of photos of him from the magazine photo shoot, so we decided to publish them every Tuesday. Enjoy looking at this handsome fella! This is a rather grumpy look.

08/06/2024

5. Spork
Neither a spoon nor a fork, Spork is hard to define. Mood swings and radical behaviors got her the name.

04/06/2024

Kilgore's photo was published in a magazine , so that makes him the most famous of our Bankhars. We have a bunch of photos of him from the magazine photo shoot, so we decided to publish them every Tuesday. Enjoy looking at this handsome fella!

01/06/2024

4. Juno
Juno was less than a year old when she got pregnant. The unplanned pregnancy was not her fault, but ours. And just like in the movie, Juno delivered healthy puppies without problems and we were all relieved.
Today is Children and Mother's day in Mongolia, so happy and healthy life for everyone!

28/05/2024

This is Khuder before he came to us. A troubled youth.
If you missed his full story, see here.
https://www.facebook.com/photo?fbid=791243153100031&set=a.530022529222096

25/05/2024

3. Khaan
Khaan is Khuder’s son, but he did not inherit the coat color. He is relatively young but eventually he is destined to ascend the throne, as his name suggests. So, you could refer to him as the crown prince for now.

18/05/2024

2. Kilgore
Named after author Kurt Vonnegut’s fictional character, Kilgore is the most majestic looking of our Bankhars. Classic Bankhar coat. Thus, he represented our project in Scientific American. His calm and proud demeanor also resembles Mufasa.
Just recently he left our main breeding facility at Hustai and went to a satellite breeder in Undurshireet. Thus, he continues to be our reliable partner in spreading our mission across Mongolia!

Read the article where Kilgore was featured in photo here
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/could-dogs-help-save-the-mongolian-steppe/

16/05/2024

When you visit our Bankhars, you not only get to see unique Mongolian herding culture, but also rare wildlife and archaeological sites! Embark Vet

14/05/2024

Last week we had the pleasure of hosting Ryan Boyko from Vet and he drove 800kms to see our Bankhars in Bayankhongor where the Bankhars are successfully protecting herd from Snow Leopards. Thank you for visiting us and getting to see what we do in person!
The second photo was taken near Hustai where a dog was spotted following the herd. Our staff noted that LGD tradition is becoming ever more popular due to our work being known in Mongolia for years now.

11/05/2024

We are going to introduce our "parent" Bankhars at our breeding facilities one by one. We will start with Khuder who is one of our oldest males. He also represents the spiritual significance that Bankhars have in Mongolian culture. When our director and founder Bruce got very sick in Mongolia from a rare disease, Khuder appeared in his dream/delirium which is similar to how Bankhars are believed to protect their owners from/in the spiritual world. He is the project's guardian!

1. Khuder
Born way out in the West Altai Mountains of Mongolia, Khuder was brought to UB by a breeder and used to drag a car tire around as a puppy which was meant to develop his muscles. Also, the owner kept him tied up a lot, making him extremely aggressive. All this was done to make him fight other dogs. Despite his young age, he used to defeat heavier and older dogs, living up the meaning of his name which means “tough and fearsome”. Fortunately, fate has brought him to us and he had the opportunity to leave the hard and abusive life behind and learn to love and be loved. A Mongolian “White Fang” story.
Khuder has the common black coat and, most importantly, the valued “white spot” on his chest which Mongolians believe to be a sign of a dog with righteous and pure heart. Having fathered many of our Livestock Guardian Dogs that are working hard in different parts of Mongolia, protecting livestock from predators and helping Mongolian herders live in harmony with the wild predators, Khuder now lives out his remaining days in peace and tranquility at our facility.

09/05/2024

Look at this wee little foal at our facility! Our new caretaker is partially looking after his son's horses. One of the mares rejected her little one, so our caretaker Batja took up the role of mother and bottle feeding the poor animal.

09/05/2024

Look at this wee little foal at our facility! Our new caretaker is partially looking after his son's horses ( a harem with a stallion). One of the young mares rejected her little one, so our caretaker Batja akh took up the role of mother and bottle feeding (cow milk mixed with sugar) the poor animal. Now the foal follows him everywhere!
Will introduce our caring caretaker later!

27/03/2024

31/01/2024

20/01/2024

Sharkov enjoying a snow day in the pasture recently. He was placed in Umnugovi 7 years ago. Photo by his owner.

18/01/2024

Due to heavy snow this winter, elks came down from the mountains to crop fields where they find it easier to graze. Our breeding facility is right on the edge of the Hustai National Park which is home to a great number of these elks and the famous Przwalskii horses.

10/01/2024

😄

25/12/2023

Merry Christmas!

05/12/2023

A happy snow leopard family in Western Mongolia!

09/11/2023

Малч Банхар сургахын хамгийн чухал зүйл нь бэлчээрт малын дэргэд хоолыг нь өгөх байдаг.
Feeding the Bankhars at pasture next to herd is the most important aspect of LGD training.

02/11/2023

One last scene of Khuder with the herd in the lush Gobi Steppe. Aug 2023.

30/09/2023

Khuder in the steppe with the herd. (Another view)

28/09/2023

Another picture of Misheel with her two Bankhars, Baavgai and Paatsag, at pasture. Bayankhongor province, Aug 2023.

23/09/2023

Тал дээрхи мал, Банхар нохойн цаана Бөөн цагаан нуурын мандал харагдаж байна. Бага нууруудын хотгорын хамгийн том нуурыг ажлын байран дээрээсээ тольдонхон хэвтэж байдаг ёстой жаргаж байдаг буян юмаа.

Khuder with the herd in the steppe. In the distance, below the horizon is one of the largest lakes of the arid southwestern part of Mongolia. What a view for the Bankhar! No wonder she enjoys her work so much! Bayankhongor province, Aug 2023.

21/09/2023

English below
Малч Банхаруудаа дагуулаад малаа услахаар тууж яваа Монгол охин. Охины эзгүйд Банхарууд нь малаа хараад үлддэг. Ийм сургуультай болгохын тулд охины аав ээж нь манай төслөөс өгсөн зааврын дагуу Банхаруудаа гөлөг байхаас нь бэлчээрт нь хооллож их цаг заваа зарцуулсан. Түүнийхээ ачаар өнөөдөр хээр бэлчээрт байгаа мал руу нь ирвэс, чоно зэрэг зэрлэг араатан халдах вий гэж санаа зовох юмгүй болжээ. Монголчуудын нүүдэлч ахуй ийнхүү уламжлан хадгалагдаж, хээрийн амьтад ч гэсэн давхар хамгаалагдаж манай төслийн зорилго хэрэгжсээр байна.

A Mongolian nomadic girl on her way to the watering hole with her Bankhars and animals. The Bankhar Livestock Guardian Dogs will remain with the herd when the girl goes back home. To achieve this level of training for the Bankhars, eer parents made great efforts including feeding the dogs at pasture everyday when the they were young, following the protocol we provided. Thanks to their hard work, now they do not worry about predation at pasture from wild predators like snow leopards or wolves. This is how our mission is being accomplished, preserving both the nomadic way of life and wildlife population.

16/09/2023

Khuder with the herd in the steppe. Bayankhongor province, Aug 2023.

14/09/2023

English below
Малч Банхаруудаа дагуулаад малаа услахаар тууж яваа Монгол охин. Охины эзгүйд Банхарууд нь малаа хараад үлддэг. Ийм сургуультай болгохын тулд охины аав ээж нь манай төслөөс өгсөн зааврын дагуу Банхаруудаа гөлөг байхаас нь бэлчээрт нь хооллож их цаг заваа зарцуулсан. Түүнийхээ ачаар өнөөдөр хээр бэлчээрт байгаа мал руу нь ирвэс, чоно зэрэг зэрлэг араатан халдах вий гэж санаа зовох юмгүй болжээ. Монголчуудын нүүдэлч ахуй ийнхүү уламжлан хадгалагдаж, хээрийн амьтад ч гэсэн давхар хамгаалагдаж манай төслийн зорилго хэрэгжсээр байна.

A Mongolian nomadic girl on her way to the watering hole with her Bankhars and animals. The Bankhar Livestock Guardian Dogs will remain with the herd when the girl goes back home. To achieve this level of training for the Bankhars, eer parents made great efforts including feeding the dogs at pasture everyday when the they were young, following the protocol we provided. Thanks to their hard work, now they do not worry about predation at pasture from wild predators like snow leopards or wolves. This is how our mission is being accomplished, preserving both the nomadic way of life and wildlife population.

11/09/2023

Манай төслийг товч дурдсан баримтат кино олон нийтэд нээлттэй болжээ. 24 мин орчимд манай Банхарууд гарч байгаа.
Checkout this great documentary about Mongolia which features our project (at about 24 mins)! It was produced 2 years ago and it is nice to see publicly available now.

Mongolia. For most of us, a name that brings to mind the powerful empire of Genghis Khan. This film is a journey through Mongolian history and into modern Mo...