I recently watched, again, the movie Oddball; a delightful Australian family movie based on a true story. Now, even though the movie story line is not exactly the way things happened, the basic facts are there.
Fairy Penguins had made their home on Middle Island just off the coast of Warrnambool. There use to be hundreds of them at one point but foxes had found the island and the population of the penguins were down to numbers as low as six due to fox attacks. Swampy Marsh is an actual person who owns a chicken farm and used Maremma Sheepdogs to protect his flock of chickens. It was his idea to use the Maremma and his dog, Oddball, was used in the project to protect the tiny penguins. The Middle Island Maremma Project has been highly successful for many years and because of Oddball and her successors not one penguin has been killed by a fox.
This is a very sweet and fun story. I believe you will enjoy it if you haven't watched it already and if you have, go ahead and watch it again!
So, who are these Maremma Sheepdogs? They are a breed of livestock guardian dog and have been used for centuries by Italian shepherds to guard sheep from wolves. The Maremma Sheepdog has a solid, muscular build, a long, thick coat, a large head and a black nose. They are gentle with lambs but fiercely protective of their flock. They will bond to families and show a calm, intelligent disposition, however, they may display hostility towards outsiders and they are not suitable companion dogs for urban areas due to their large size and need for open space. They are recognized by the UKC and other kennel clubs throughout the world.
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