EDUCATION

Dingo Whiskers is a community education program offered by the Australian Dingo Foundation. Our passionate team are lucky enough to present alongside wonderful ambassador dingoes from the Dingo Discovery Sanctuary. This enables us to demonstrate the physical differences between dingoes, Canis dingo, and domestic dogs, Canis familiaris.

Our presentations also cover a range of topics from dingo biology, ecology, history, coexistence, and more! Using this holistic approach, we aim to get Australian’s to think outside the box. Overall, our service intends to point out the difference between how dingoes are perceived and what they actually are – Australia’s one-of-a-kind top predator, which is part of a unique Oceanic canid genetic clade, along with the New Guinea Singing Dog (Canis hallstromi).

We cater for Primary and Secondary school incursions/excursions, corporate or other events within an hour’s drive of Toolern Vale. Content presented can be tailored to accommodate a special event or subject matter. Additionally, we can offer a Zoom session tailored to your needs.

For students that are too far away for an incursion or visit to the Sanctuary, an information pack is available. All students need to do is send a letter to the ADF (P.O. Box 502, Gisborne, Victoria, 3437), asking us questions about dingoes!

If you’re interested in one of our presentations please email us at dingodiscovery@yahoo.com.au for enquiries and bookings.
You can also follow our journey on Instagram @dingowhiskers.

PRICES

EXCURSIONS (1.5 hours) COST PER STUDENT**
Primary and Secondary $15
Tertiary $25

Please note that we have a minimum attendance of 10 students and a maximum attendance of 20 students per presentation. Excursions are held at the Dingo Discovery Sanctuary and Research Centre, Toolern Vale, Victoria. Cost per adult/supervisor $75.

INCURSIONS (1-2 hours) COST PER HOUR**
Primary and Secondary 1 hour – $400, 2 hours – $500
Tertiary 1 hour – $450, 2 hours – $550
Corporate/Weekend Event 1 hour – $500, 2 hours – $600

Please note that we have a maximum two hour allocation for incursions to ensure the welfare of our ambassador dingoes.

INCURSION GROUP SIZE BOOKING TIME
Small groups (15-30 people)
  • 1 hour booking (1 x presentation)
  • 2 hour booking (1 x presentation)
Large groups/cohorts (more than 30 people)
  • 1 hour booking (3 x 20min presentations)
  • 2 hour booking (6 x 20min presentations)

Zoom Presentations at the Dingo Discovery Sanctuary and Research Centre – $50** for 30 minutes.

**The Australian Dingo Foundation is a not-for-profit organisation, and registered conservation charity. All ADF proceeds provide support and care for 40+ pure and entire dingoes at the Dingo Discovery Sanctuary and Research Centre. Any money raised through our education service enables us to not only care for our dingoes, but allows us to continue researching Australia’s misunderstood top land predator.

SCHOOL SPONSORSHIP PACKAGES

School Sponsorship Packages give schools the wonderful opportunity of sponsoring any one of the dingoes at the Dingo Discovery Sanctuary (tax deductible), with educational resources and presentations as an added bonus. Schools are able to choose from different priced sponsorship packages, and schools outside of our 1-hour travel radius will also be able to learn about dingoes and support dingo conservation.

PACKAGE CONTENT PRICE
Desert
  • Sponsorship of a dingo at the Dingo Discovery Sanctuary with a school certificate and photo.
  • Sponsored Dingo Profile pdf.
  • Close schools: 1x 1.5 hours excursion or 1x 1-2 hour incursion.
  • Far schools: 2x 30 minute Zoom presentations or 1x 1.5 hours excursion to the Sanctuary.
  • Primary or Secondary Fact Sheet pdf.
$40 per month (total $480)
Tropical
  • Sponsorship of a dingo at the Dingo Discovery Sanctuary with a school certificate and photo.
  • Sponsored Dingo Profile pdf.
  • Close schools: 2x 1.5 hours excursion or 2x 1-2 hour incursion.
  • Far schools: 4x 30 minute Zoom presentations or 2x 1.5 hours excursion to the Sanctuary.
  • Primary or Secondary Fact Sheet pdf.
  • Access to our ‘Dingo Senses’ educational video.
$80 per month (total $960)
Alpine
  • Sponsorship of a dingo at the Dingo Discovery Sanctuary with a school certificate and photo.
  • Sponsored Dingo Profile pdf.
  • Close schools: 3x 1.5 hours excursion or 3x 1-2 hour incursion.
  • Far schools: 6x 30 minute Zoom presentations or 3x 1.5 hours excursion to the Sanctuary.
  • Primary or Secondary Take-home Fact Sheet pdf.
  • Access to our ‘Dingo Senses’ educational video.
$120 per month (total $1440)

Please note: Close schools are within 1 hours drive from the Dingo Discovery Sanctuary in Toolern Vale, and far schools are further than 1 hours drive from the Sanctuary. Excursions to the Sanctuary have a maximum of 20 students per booking.  Incursions to schools are a maximum of 2 hours for dingo welfare, and multiple short presentations can be booked within this timeframe to accommodate large cohorts.

EXPRESSION OF INTEREST FORM

If you would like to register your interest in purchasing a School Sponsorship Package, please fill out the details in the form below. We will then contact you to confirm all details. Don’t forget to take a look at the ‘Our Dingoes’ page if you need help in deciding which dingo to sponsor.

COMING SOON

A VCAL (Victorian Certificate of Applied Learning) Program is currently being designed to support students completing a VCAL certificate. The first implementation currently covers PDS (Personal Development Skills) with a Unit 1 and Unit 2 curriculum outline and resources. In the future, a curriculum will also be developed for Work Related Skills (WRS), Literacy and Numeracy. The program is adaptable to all levels of VCAL (foundation, intermediate, and senior). The purpose of the program is to create connections between the Dingo Discovery Sanctuary and schools, raising awareness for the dingoes while supporting teachers in creating long-lasting community partnerships.

Dingo Whiskers Club is a 2 hour weekend workshop tailored to cater for Grades 4, 5 and 6 that will begin in 2021. Educational stations will be set-up at the Dingo Discovery Sanctuary and will allow students to learn about dingoes behind the scenes. Special guest appearances across various professions will also be part of the DW Club, as limited edition events, to broaden students’ horizons.