In this episode of K9 Conservationists, Kayla speaks with Gregory Herin from Getxent to discuss Getxent tubes. 

Science Highlight: Noninvasive Identification of Herpetofauna: Pairing Conservation Dogs and Genetic Analysis 

Links Mentioned in the Episode: 

Where to find Getxent: Website | Facebook | Instagram | LinkedIn | Twitter 

You can support the K9 Conservationists Podcast by joining our Patreon at patreon.com/k9conservationists.

In this episode of K9 Conservationists, Kayla speaks with Meg Parker from the Center for Large Landscape Conservation to discuss thinking bigger in the world of conservation detection dogs. 

Science Highlight: Factors That May Affect the Success of Scent Detection Dogs: Exploring Nonconventional Models of Preparation and Deployment 

What does it mean to be “thinking bigger” in the field of conservation detection? 

Where to find Meg Parker: Website 

You can support the K9 Conservationists Podcast by joining our Patreon at patreon.com/k9conservationists.

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In this episode of K9 Conservationists, Kayla hosts multiple guests as they answer one of the top questions conservation dog handlers get: how did you select your conservation detection dog?

You can find our guests online here:

Jo Lock:     Website | Instagram | Facebook

You can support the K9 Conservationists Podcast by joining our Patreon at patreon.com/k9conservationists.

K9 Conservationists Website | Merch | Support Our Work | Facebook | Instagram | TikTok

In this episode of K9 Conservationists, Kayla hosts multiple guests as they answer one of the top questions conservation dog handlers get: how do you get into the world of conservation detection?

You can find our guests online here:

Jo Lock:     Website | Instagram | Facebook

You can support the K9 Conservationists Podcast by joining our Patreon at patreon.com/k9conservationists.

K9 Conservationists Website | Merch | Support Our Work | Facebook | Instagram | TikTok

In this episode, we sit down with Heather Nootbaar and Rachel Hamre, cofounders of K9 Conservationists. We dive into the work we did in Kenya, especially what Heather and Rachel worked on after Kayla went home. We also discuss what we found surprising, inspiring, challenging, and fun about working with Action for Cheetahs in Kenya. We talk about our future hopes for the team with Action for Cheetahs and what we're hoping to do better next time we're hired as outside consultants for a scat dog program. 

You can support the K9 Conservationists Podcast by joining our Patreon at patreon.com/k9conservationists.

K9 Conservationists Website | Merch | Support Our Work | Facebook | Instagram | TikTok

In this episode of K9 Conservationists, Kayla interviews co-founder Heather. They discuss how Heather got into the world of conservation detection dogs, her experience before K9 Conservationists, and how she met Kayla. 

Science Highlight: Using Scent Detection Dogs in Conservation Settings: A Review of Scientific Literature Regarding Their Selection

We Discuss:

Links Mentioned in the Episode:

You can support the K9 Conservationists Podcast by joining our Patreon at patreon.com/k9conservationists.

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In this episode of K9 Conservationists, Kayla interviews co-founder Rachel Hamre. They discuss how Rachel first got into dog training, her many jobs as a field tech, how she and Kayla met, Rachel’s season handling Barley, and her journey with her new dog Suki. Science Highlight: Why Sniff Fast? The Relationship Between Sniff Frequency, Odor Discrimination, and Receptor Neuron Activation in the Rat (https://journals.physiology.org/doi/full/10.1152/jn.90981.2008) 

Links Mentioned in the Episode: 

You can support the K9 Conservationists Podcast by joining our Patreon at patreon.com/k9conservationists.

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In this episode of K9 Conservationists, Kayla answers some questions from Patron Meg! We discuss when and how to introduce alerts, target odors, and a variety of life skills. We also talk about whether or not sports and other "hobbies" may harm your detection K9's performance and much more.

Science Highlight: Search strategies for conservation detection dogs

Links Mentioned in the Episode:

Playlist of all of Niffler's training sessions

@detectionforgood on Instagram

You can support the K9 Conservationists Podcast by joining our Patreon at patreon.com/k9conservationists.

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In this bonus episode of K9 Conservationists, Kayla speaks with the Skylos Ecology Team, Tracey Lyten and Fiona Jackson, to discuss how to work safely around wildlife and livestock. 

What are your expectations/goals around detection dogs and wildlife? Safety is top priority! Teaching the dog that the animal is there, they can acknowledge them, but not disturb them We don’t just want the dogs to bother wildlife, but we want them to be able to work around them as well It’s important for the handlers to be prepared for any and all hazards that you may come across 

Why is appropriate behavior around wildlife important? Safety for the dogs and wildlife. Ensuring the job can get done and proper data can be collected. To give clients confidence in the method and remain professional and ethical in the business.

 How do you select a dog that would be able to learn these skills? Testing dogs natural instinct around other animals; it takes a lot of work to teach a dog to not chase if they have the drive for it, but it is possible. Their life at home will have an impact on work.

What are skills taught to dogs to work in the conservation detection line of work? Emergency stops and recalls. Wait, out of sight stays. All skills from a distance. Car/road safety. Good manners around other domesticated animals. General wildlife interaction training, aka just existing with them and not chasing, etc.

Links Mentioned in the Episode:  

Where to find Sylos Ecology Team: Website | Facebook | Instagram | ACDN Conference

You can support the K9 Conservationists Podcast by joining our Patreon at patreon.com/k9conservationists.

K9 Conservationists Website | Merch | Support Our Work | Facebook | Instagram | TikTok

In this episode of K9 Conservationists, Kayla speaks with Edwin, a conservation dog handler at Actions for Cheetahs in Kenya. Kayla spent 6 weeks with Edwin and Naomi helping move the program forward before Heather and Rachel (also from K9 Conservationists) arrived to spend about a month each with the program. Stay tuned for more updates!

Links Mentioned in the Episode:

Where to find ACK: Website | Facebook | Vaccination Facebook Page | Go Fund Me

You can support the K9 Conservationists Podcast by joining our Patreon at patreon.com/k9conservationists.

K9 Conservationists Website | Merch | Support Our Work | Facebook | Instagram | TikTok