To restore an ancient way of life for Mongolian herders, a Connecticut-based NGO is reintroducing a special type of dog to safeguard livestock.

BY EILEEN JENKINS

Your dog may be able to catch a Frisbee, but can it preserve an ageless culture in the wilds of Mongolia? Scientists at the Mongolian Bankhar Dog Project, a small NGO operating in Mongolia, hope the dogs they’re raising can do just that.

The MBDP breeds and raises Bankhar, a primal canine landrace, to once again serve as livestock guardian dogs for nomadic herders across the rugged landscape of north-central Asia. This nomadic lifestyle, along with the Bankhar, was nearly wiped out during Mongolia’s decades as a Soviet satellite state, when the ruling communist party sought to modernize and industrialize Mongolia and suppressed nomadism. At the same time [read more]