http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-35039105
The dogs that protect little penguins
When foxes discovered little penguins on a small Australian island, they nearly wiped the colony out. But a farmer came up with a novel way to protect the birds - and the story has been made into a hit film.
The fairy penguins, as I'm going to call them, faced being wiped out on Middle Island - until a chicken farmer, by the made-for-cinema name of Swampy Marsh, came up with a plan. He suggested sending one of his Maremma dogs to protect the birds.
"In Australia those dogs are generally used for chicken protection or goats or sheep," says Abbott.
The dog, the first of several to be used on Middle Island, was called Oddball - and Oddball made quite an impact.
"We immediately saw a change in the pattern of the foxes," says Abbott.
"Leading up to when the dog went on the island, every morning we'd find fox prints on the beach. Putting a dog on the island changed the hierarchy. The foxes can hear the dogs barking, they can smell them so they go somewhere else."
Amazingly, since Oddball and his four-legged successors were introduced 10 years ago, there has not been a single penguin killed by a fox on Middle Island.
see
http://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/bushtelegraph/one-maremma-dog-saves-penguin-colony-and-inspires-movie-oddball/5630762
see
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt3401748/?ref_=nv_sr_1 
