Celebrating 70 Years

This year Dr. Greg Rasmussen celebrated his 70th birthday and marked 39 years dedicated to researching and protecting Africa’s endangered painted dogs. Since beginning his pioneering fieldwork in Zimbabwe in 1987, Greg has devoted so much of his life to creating understanding of one of the world’s most endangered carnivores.

His accomplishments are remarkable. Through decades of patient research, Greg has produced 47 scientific publications, documenting painted-dog ecology, behavior, survival, and the threats facing these extraordinary animals. His long-term efforts also helped end the shooting of painted dogs by ranchers in Zimbabwe in 2000, and in the subsequent 26 years, no painted dogs have been shot there.

Today, as founder and executive director of Painted Dog Research, Greg continues his work from Zimbabwe at the Painted Dog Research Conservation Ecology Centre. He continues to lead the PDR team of 30 Zimbabweans in combining science with community-based education, habitat restoration, den disturbance prevention, road-safety initiatives, and mentorship of the next generation of conservationists. His work has earned international recognition, including the Wildlife Society Award, Whitley Wildinvest Continuation Award for Conservation, a feature in the 2012 book Wildlife Heroes, a 2023 nomination for the prestigious Indianapolis Prize, and The Living Desert Conservation Hero Award in 2025. There is still more to come from Dr. Greg!

So, to our dear friend and conservation leader, Greg, we celebrate your 70 years on this planet, knowing that you have made an extraordinary difference in the lives of painted dogs and so very many people.

If you would like to give a gift of $70 in honor of Greg’s 70 years, please go to https://www.painteddogresearch.org/donate.