Last year, a movie about a naughty dog that protects little penguins from foxes was a moderate success in Australia. Oddball, which was based on a true story, is set in Middle Island, Australia. People brought foxes over for sport hunting and they were soon killing little penguins at an alarming rate. At one time, the island was full of penguins, and at the beginning of the movie, there were less than 10 left. A local chicken farmer named Swampy Marsh knew he had the solution. He would let his sheepdog that protected his livestock from being eaten by foxes protect the penguins as well. Marsh proposed his idea to the city council, but it took a while to get them to agree to it. Eventually, Marsh's dog was protecting the penguins, and the penguin population grew to over 150. As with any movie, some of the facts were changed to appeal to the general public for support, but Marsh's plan worked so well that the city is raising money for more dogs to protect other species of animals that are threatened by the foxes.
