PAINTED DOG TV
Conservation Safari

"Immerse yourself into the wild with the
women and men who safeguard our planet."

Explore the unexplored wilderness and immerse yourself into the world of African wildlife conservation with this highly personalized safari experience. Our friends and partners at Painted Dog TV have crafted a truly unique experience offering you the chance to dine with biologists, work hands in the field alongside conservation projects, and get an up-close personal view into the world of wildlife conservation.

Your entire trip is catered toward engaging you with nature from the moment you land to the moment you depart Africa. As you navigate through the bush in open seater game viewers you'll find that the rhythm of life changes. You'll start to see life in a new way. There's a saying in the bush, "it takes three days." That's how long it takes your mind to unplug from your world and re-wild itself to engage fully into the African bush. You'll begin hearing bird calls differently. Tracks in the roadways will become more obvious to you. Suddenly you'll recognize the stillness as a sign there could be lions, or leopards, somewhere near-by.

Courtesy of PDTV

MEET THE PAINTED DOG TV GUIDES

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Brent Leo-Smith

Khaya Tlou

Having grown up in the KwaZulu-Natal hinterland of South Africa, Brent Leo-Smith knew that a career in the bush was inevitable. He was home schooled at Phinda Game Reserve and a result is a real “wild child”.

He then tried his hand at studying law, but the bush called him back, resulting in six months in Zambia doing crocodile and big game capture, and running game farms. Brent returned to his then home in Botswana and worked for his father at Kwando Safaris, before making the move to the Kruger National Park to take up a position as a guide at the Lebombo Concession. Later, he went to work at Londolozi Game Reserve as a guide and camp manager.

In 2010, Brent began work in film production, both behind and in-front of camera, having featured on Animal Planet and Nat Geo Wild, where he presented over fifty episodes of the #SafariLive series. In 2019, he co-founded Painteddog TV, a technology driven wildlife and conservation media company.

Khaya’s love for the African wild is as infectious as his energy and good mood!

Currently in his thirties, he was born and raised in a village called Siyabuswa in the Mpumalanga Province of South Africa. Khaya means “home” and Tlou means “elephant” in the IsiNdebele and Setswana languages respectively, so it is only fitting that he finds his home amongst the giants of the African wild.

Khaya graduated from no less than three leading wildlife education institutions. At the Southern African Wildlife College, he qualified as a Field Ranger in 2012, and in 2016 went to SACT Tracker Academy for the one-year Indigenous Tracking Skills course.

Lastly in 2018 he qualified as a Field Guide with the Field Guide Association of South Africa. Khaya has spent over seven full years in big five territory, during which he was a Field Ranger in South Africa’s famous Sabi Sands Game Reserve, a wildlife presenter for WildEarth (broadcasting internationally), a wildlife presenter on Africa from Within (broadcasting in South Africa) and is currently a safari guide and presenter for Painteddog TV.