A local chicken farmer, Swampy Marsh, suggested Maremma guardian dogs could be used to protect the penguins. Swampy had successfully used Maremmas to help protect his free range chickens. In a world-first, Maremma dogs were trained and placed on Middle Island to protect the penguins from foxes during the breeding season. The project has been a huge success using guardian dogs for conservation and raising community support and awareness of the environment.. Middle Island has been closed to the public since 2006 to protect penguin burrows from human trampling which can harm penguins,...