How Wide Should Conservation Dog Search Transects Be? 

When searching an area for scat, invasive plants, or other data points, many researchers and conservation detection dog teams employ a transect search. In order to determine the appropriate spacing of your transects, you need to understand the local conditions influencing air flow and the probability of detection for your …

Conservation Canines: How Dogs work for the Environment

In this episode of K9 Conservationists, Kayla speaks with Isabelle Groc about her book Conservation Canines: How Dogs Work for the Environment. Science Highlight: Performance of detection dogs and visual searches for scat detection and discrimination amongst related species with identical diets Links Mentioned in the Episode: Isabelle Groc Book …

Do Our Working Dogs Owe Us Work?

In this episode of K9 Conservationists, Kayla speaks with Sarah Stremming and Erin Jones regarding what we owe our working dogs, and what they owe us. Science Highlight: Buzzing with possibilities: Training and olfactory generalization in conservation detection dogs for an endangered stonefly species  What DO we owe our dogs? …

Difficult Dogs Part 2, Shelter Stress, and More with Ursa Acree

In this episode of K9 Conservationists, Kayla is back with a bonus part two episode about difficult dogs in conservation work. She is joined by Ursa Acree, previous co-host on the retired podcast Canine Conversations. What are some environmental factors in the shelter or in the home that can make …

Errors, Mistakes, and Failure in Conservation Dog Training

In this episode of K9 Conservationists, Kayla talks about mistakes, failure, and errors.  This week’s science highlight: You Are Not My Handler! Impact of Changing Handlers on Dogs’ Behaviours and Detection Performance. Sign up for our fundraising trivia night here or make a plain old donation here. Everything is just data; …

What to Know Before Hiring a Conservation Detection Dog Team, Part 2

In this episode of K9 Conservationists, Kayla is back for part two with Kyoko Johnson from Conservation Dog Hawaii and Jennifer Hartman from Rogue Detection Teams to continue their talk about things to know before hiring a conservation detection dog team.  This week’s science highlight: How Behavior of Nontarget Species …