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conservationdogshawaii

Most of our past work has been in outdoor natural

Most of our past work has been in outdoor natural environments. For the biosecurity project, we've been training in indoor areas, which have their own unique challenges, such as tight spaces, physical obstacles, unusual airflow (at least for the dogs), and working on leash, all of which can make it harder to source a target. Additionally, there's a lot to learn about rodent behavior and associated odors. We're grateful to Mark Vick of @workingdogsforconservation for his guidance through the process.
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Conservation work is so varied in its methods, applications, and targets, and we love that the shared goal is to protect wildlife and the environment!
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📸 of Teams Kaiao and Guinness aboard R/V Kilo Moana by @tor.johnson.photography
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#biosecurity #rodentdetection #invasivespecies #gmanflyingnun #KKKamae

Mahalo to @uhmarinecenter and @soest_uh for facili

Mahalo to @uhmarinecenter and @soest_uh for facilitating our biosecurity training aboard R/V Kilo Moana this past weekend. What an impressive vessel, not to mention welcoming captain and crew. We’ll post more photos in the coming weeks!

📸 by @tor.johnson.photography (L to R): Dog handlers Lisa and Kyoko, rat Junior, dog Guinness, and Captain David Martin
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#researchvessel #kilomoana #biosecurity

We are putting out a call for help for one of our

We are putting out a call for help for one of our dog team’s `ohana. Roberta Bitzer and her Malinois Qana are founding members of our invasive species program and have given countless hours towards protecting our islands’ ecosystems. Roberta’s young son James has been diagnosed with stage 4 neuroblastoma cancer and has begun undergoing intensive treatment, much of which will involve spending time on the east coast. Please consider donating to help with expenses that won’t be covered by medical insurance. K9 Qana is a devil weed detection rock star and had recently started pest rodent detection training for biosecurity. We plan to contribute to Qana’s care and training while the Bitzer family is fighting for James’ recovery. Mahalo! ❤️ GoFundMe link in our bio and video story.

https://gofund.me/1ad35da2

ʻimi - v. To look, hunt, search, seek (wehewehe.o

ʻimi - v. To look, hunt, search, seek (wehewehe.org)
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We haven't posted much lately but wanted to celebrate Mahina ʻÕlelo Hawaiʻi (Hawaiian Language Month) and Hawaiʻi Invasive Species Awareness Month before it’s too late!
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In this photo, Team Qana is surveying for an invasive plant along the coast of the Big Island. Most recently they've been training for pest rodent detection, which has many applications in the islands.
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Happy Hunting and mahalo to all who work to control invasive species! 🐕 @qanagator @betabitzer
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#mahinaolelohawaii #hawaiiinvasivespeciesawarenessmonth #invasivespecies #snifferdog #detectiondog

Rodent detection dog training means collecting num

Rodent detection dog training means collecting numerous tiny pieces of scat on a daily basis. One trick we’ve learned is waiting for the scat to dry and harden up so it doesn’t stick to the hemostats. 💩 #rodentsofinstagram #pooparty #poophappens #shithappens #miceofinstagram #detectiondogtraining

Soon after we established CDH, we created a progra

Soon after we established CDH, we created a program called Canines for Conservationists, which aims to collaborate with Hawai‘i's natural resource managers and field crew, not only in their conservation efforts but also for us to share knowledge about selecting, training and working detection dogs. With Hawai‘i being the most isolated yet populated land mass in the world, it's not easy nor cost effective to fly in trained dogs and handlers, so it makes a lot of sense to build local capacity. We always knew that our organization and other local conservation dog trainers alone could not fulfill all the needs in the islands since there are so many potential ways that dogs can be utilized here for wildlife conservation.
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It started out as hosting one time scent detection workshops, but we are so excited to now be training several biologists and field techs on detection dog concepts, through remote sessions and in person training. They include folks from Big Island, Maui and O‘ahu who specialize in endangered plants and invasive species. We look forward to sharing more over the next several months.
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📸: Guinness enjoys his toy after a find while handler Garrett of Guam Dept. of Agriculture and ex-HPD K9 trainer Rusty Radona do a search debrief. We love inter-agency collaborations!

Part of training dogs for rodent detection involve

Part of training dogs for rodent detection involves learning as much as possible about the target species. A confined environment might not show us everything about wild mice, but we’re already learning a lot about their instincts, diets, and physical capabilities and activities. And in case you were wondering, mice are very different from rats although they have similarities, such as…they both poop a lot, which is helpful for our training sample (scat) collection. 😄🐭

We’re excited to resume rodent detection trainin

We’re excited to resume rodent detection training in preparation for biosecurity, monitoring of predator-proof exclosures, and post-eradication surveys. What makes it even better is that we’ll be training under the guidance of a rodent detection expert from Working Dogs for Conservation who has implemented biosecurity K9 projects in South Georgia and the Falkland Islands, among other locations.

Let the fun begin! 🐀🐀🐀

A huge shout-out to our new partner @thecoconuttra

A huge shout-out to our new partner @thecoconuttraveler ! Their generous sponsorship will help us cover inter-island travel for both dogs and humans this year. The Coconut Traveler (TCT) is B Corp certified, meaning they've demonstrated a high level of commitment to the environment and community. Their travel customers pay a "responsible tourism fee," which allows TCT to donate funds to local non-profit organizations that align with their mission, thus jointly creating a positive impact in the Hawaiian Islands.
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One of our most recent trips had us visiting @hawaii_ant_lab in Hilo to discuss a new project that aims to use dogs to sniff out little fire ants (LFA) in potted plants that are shipped from the Big Island to neighbor islands. Last year we trained a coqui frog detection dog on Maui, with the eventual goal of conducting field surveys to find outlier frogs in uninfested locations. Due to logistical challenges, we decided to combine coqui frogs with our new LFA project and switch the focus to inter-island bio-security. Stay tuned for more updates!
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Learn about TCT at https://www.thecoconuttraveler.com

Big mahalo to @bishopmuseum for hosting us for a p

Big mahalo to @bishopmuseum for hosting us for a presentation yesterday, and thanks to everyone who attended. We had a great time sharing about our mission and work, and we even got to do some detection training demos with Pipit and Ula. Bishop Musuem has provided CDH with specimens for scent training over the last few years and we are so grateful for the partnership!

Photos by @tor.johnson.photography
📸 1: Sheila & Pipit, Kyoko, Lisa, Julie & Ula
📸 2: Pipit demoing seabird detection with toy reward
📸 3: Sheila presenting to the audience
📸 4: Ula demoing devil weed detection with food reward
📸 5: Bishop Museum staff with CDH shirts
📸 6: Pipit

2022 Year in Review - We got to work on a lot of e

2022 Year in Review - We got to work on a lot of exciting projects. Mahalo to all our collaborators and partners. We can’t wait to start work on some new projects in 2023. The coqui frog project will merge with the new LFA project and will focus on screening nursery plants.

We had such a great time at @patagoniahonolulu tod

We had such a great time at @patagoniahonolulu today. Every year they invite local non-profits to gift wrap customers’ purchased items with their upcycled cloth bags, and receive donations for it. This year we were fortunate to be able to participate and share our organization’s story with their Xmas shoppers. What’s even more amazing is that these Patagonia bags have custom woodblock artwork on them, designed and printed by their staff, featuring native species and Hawai`i staples such as `ōhi`a, limu and `ulu, cultural symbols like shaka 🤙 and legendary surfer Rell Sunn, and invasive species such as axis deer - all to raise awareness about environmental conservation and Hawaiian culture.
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Mahalo Patagonia for the opportunity and mahalo to all the customers who donated to CDH!

📸1: Some of the awesome designs on the bags.
📸2: Spot the black dog! Zephyr got to greet the customers and staff today.

Happy Winter Solstice! Once again we've been absen

Happy Winter Solstice! Once again we've been absent from social media lately due to behind the scenes presentations, meetings, proposals and such, but amidst all that, we got to visit Kaua‘i and shadow the dog teams that we trained last year for Hanalei Refuge's K9 program which aims to curb avian botulism. Fortunately we were there before the storm hit, so the weather was amazing and the scenery breathtaking.

📸 Debra and K9 Xena; Hawaiian stilts or ae‘o; Marcia and K9 Koa

Our new limited edition 2023 calendar is a tribute

Our new limited edition 2023 calendar is a tribute to the dogs that have furthered our non-profit’s mission since our inception in 2019. Each month also features information about our target species and conservation efforts, from invasive plant and insect detection to endangered seabird searching. We look forward to expanding our programs in 2023, including bio-security, with targets ranging from little fire ants and coqui frogs to mice and rats.
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Link is in our bio for our limited edition 2023 calendar, as well as our "Scent-work Slogan" and "Native Waterbird Hat" stickers and t-shirts. All proceeds will support our programs in 2023. Mahalo and have a great holiday season!
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🥰 Mahalo to @kimsrogers @chippertonphotography and @tor.johnson.photography for your calendar photo contributions, and to @nimzoid for the Waterbird Hat designs 🥰

Mahalo to Waimea High School and Kaua`i Community

Mahalo to Waimea High School and Kaua`i Community Science Center for inviting us to participate in the “Science on the Lawn” event yesterday! K9 Koa enjoyed meeting all the students and giving a seabird detection demo.
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KCSC @kauaicsc is a center that showcases science and technology driven by student interests. In addition to programs such as Robotics and Climate Connect, they have a Seabird Searching program. Their student participants search Port Allen and other locations for downed seabirds during fallout season. 🙌

Mahalo to the staff from @patagonia_haleiwa and @p

Mahalo to the staff from @patagonia_haleiwa and @patagoniahonolulu for volunteering in our annual invasive plant group survey yesterday. We’re honored to be associated with a company that puts a high priority on supporting local organizations and environmental initiatives!
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📸1: Qana reminds us to respect our public lands 😄
📸2: Volunteer Minori of Patagonia with a pulled devil weed plant
📸3: Team Ruger
📸4: Volunteer Arlene of Patagonia with a large mature plant she pulled
📸5: We accidentally pulled the wrong plant! But only once…😂
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#devilweed #chromolaenaodorata #invasiveplants #invasiveplants #malamaaina #volunteerappreciation

3pm UPDATE: Tickets have sold out! 🔻🔻🔻 We

3pm UPDATE: Tickets have sold out!
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We don't know about other non-profits, but we HATE asking people for donations. Fundraising posts are among our least popular. 😂 So we're happy to say that we've already sold 35 tickets for our movie night fundraiser through word of mouth, and we only need to sell 10 more! Link is in our bio and video story. Mahalo for helping us spread the word.
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This is our only in person fundraiser event of the year and since before the pandemic. Ticket sales will help launch our new downed seabird and bio-security programs. Even if you're not a Tom Cruise fan, Top Gun Maverick is not to be missed on a big screen!

We just received an update from Guam Dept. of Agri

We just received an update from Guam Dept. of Agriculture that their new program dogs are doing great. For those who didn’t follow the journey over the summer, we were hired to source three dogs for their new biosecurity program. We found Maui, the brindle poi dog with high ball drive, through @fur_angel_foundation ; Elvis, the super food-motivated Lab mix (we think), through @the_oahu_spca ; and Penny the chocolate Lab as an owner rehome.

Lead K9 trainer Garrett Certeza reports: All three dogs have been imprinted on the odor of adult coconut rhinoceros beetle. Elvis and Penny participated in Arbor Day in the south of Guam. This was their first public outing and outreach opportunity and they both did really well. They loved being outdoors and quickly adapted to the new environment. The kids in the audience loved watching their detection demos. Funny moment: there was a mock hunter course next door - Elvis started barking at one of the pig cutouts. 🤣

Garrett says they hope to start a new Instagram feed specifically for their dogs. We’ll keep you posted!

📸 1: Elvis offering an alert on the target at Arbor Day. Photo by Kaylene Certeza

📸 2: Maui working a vehicle with her handler, Tristen.

In the downed seabird detection trial we conducted

In the downed seabird detection trial we conducted last month at Turtle Bay Resort, dog teams found 90% of the hidden targets, and visual searchers found 56.67%. Our trial focused on birds “in cover,” so rather than being out in the open, the seabird carcasses were placed in naupaka foliage and underneath parked cars, with points being generated randomly by a third party. We’re still analyzing efficiency data, but preliminary results show that the dog teams were able to find the targets much faster than visual searchers. But we were very impressed with the dedication of the visual searchers. We even had one person show up wearing knee pads so she could more easily search under cars!

Mahalo to reporter Nina Wu @ecotraveler of @staradvertiser for writing this piece to raise awareness about seabird fallout and our efforts to test this new use of conservation detection dogs.

📸 Eddie takes a break between searches at the trial

A common question we get asked is, How many scents

A common question we get asked is, How many scents (target odors) can one dog learn to detect? The answer is, many. And dogs have amazing scent memories. So could we train a dog to sniff out 40 target odors? Sure. But detection dog handlers also need to consider whether the dog being trained on a variety of target odors could cause issues in field surveys.
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As an example, we wouldn't want a seabird nest detection dog to be cross-trained on rodents, because seabirds and rodents could exist in the same environment. Because the burrow nests can't be confirmed right away, we wouldn't want to risk any confusion nor waste time and resources on the confirmation process. Another example is a devil weed detection dog that could also be trained on invasive ants. For Qana, who occasionally flies from O‘ahu to Hawai‘i island to survey for devil weed, it wouldn't be a good idea to cross train her on little fire ants in particular, because LFA are pretty common in the Hilo area and would definitely interfere with the invasive plant detection.
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There are plenty of other target odor combinations that WOULD work. But we thought you might find it interesting to hear about some examples that wouldn't be ideal for us.

📸 1: Ruger sniffs out devil weed on O'ahu
📸 2: Zephyr searches for seabird nests on the Big Island
📸 3: Qana at work on the Big Island

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