Conservation Canines (CK9) is a non-profit organization that trains

detection dogs A detection dog or sniffer dog is a dog that is trained to use its senses to detect substances such as explosives, illegal drugs, wildlife scat, currency, blood, and contraband electronics such as illicit mobile phones. The sense most used by ...

and their handlers for the purposes of wildlife research. It is part of the Center for Conservation Biology at the

University of Washington The University of Washington (UW, simply Washington, or informally U-Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington. Founded in 1861, Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast; it was established in Seattle a ...

. Since 1997, led by Dr. Samuel Wasser, Conservation Canines has worked internationally with species including the

Pacific Pocket Mouse The Pacific pocket mouse, ''Perognathus longimembris pacificus'', is endemic to California. It lives in sandy coastal soils of the coastal sage scrub ecoregion. It eats seeds and some insects. It was believed to be extinct until 1993, when a smal ...

, the

Jemez Mountains salamander The Jemez Mountains salamander (''Plethodon neomexicanus'') is a species of salamander in the family Plethodontidae endemic to New Mexico in the United States. Its natural habitat is temperate forests. It is threatened by habitat loss, is in rap ...

Killer whales The orca or killer whale (''Orcinus orca'') is a toothed whale belonging to the oceanic dolphin family, of which it is the largest member. It is the only extant species in the genus ''Orcinus'' and is recognizable by its black-and-white pa ...

, and

Tigers The tiger (''Panthera tigris'') is the largest living cat species and a member of the genus ''Panthera''. It is most recognisable for its dark vertical stripes on orange fur with a white underside. An apex predator, it primarily preys on un ...

. The training facility is located in

Eatonville, WA Eatonville is a town in Pierce County, Washington, United States. It is south of Tacoma. The population was 2,845 at the 2020 census. The town motto is "Better Together". History For centuries, Nisqually people roamed the rivers and streams o ...

. Current and former client partners include

The Nature Conservancy The Nature Conservancy (TNC) is a global environmental organization headquartered in Arlington, Virginia. it works via affiliates or branches in 79 countries and territories, as well as across every state in the US. Founded in 1951, The Natu ...

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service The United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS or FWS) is an agency within the United States Department of the Interior dedicated to the management of fish, wildlife, and natural habitats. The mission of the agency is "working with oth ...

U.S. Forest Service The United States Forest Service (USFS) is an agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture that administers the nation's 154 national forests and 20 national grasslands. The Forest Service manages of land. Major divisions of the agency in ...

, as well as various universities and state and local agencies. CK9 helped Western Ecological Research Center researchers survey conserved grasslands in San Diego County and found that indeed badgers are active. Conservation Canines sources their dogs from shelters and rescue organizations. Dogs are trained using a ball or toy reward system.

References

{{US-org-stub Detection dogs