Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (July 10, 2015)
3B THE DAILY ASTORIAN • FRIDAY, JULY 10, 2015 Poop-snif¿ng dogs work for wildlife researchers ‘Too crazy’ for pets, these dogs track scat all over the world By RICH LANDERS The Spokesman Review SPOKANE, Wash. — Shel- ter dogs too intense or feisty to be adopted are helping wildlife scientists by doing what comes naturally — running through the woods and snif¿ng for the poop of other animals. “But they don’t get to roll in it,” said Jennifer Hartman of Conservation Canines. “We’ve heard those jokes.” The noses of the canine mis- ¿ts are being put to use in Pend Oreille County in a pilot proj- ect seeking more information about the interrelationships of wolves and other carnivores — as well as with their prey. The dogs are tools for studying endangered species and other wildlife that doesn’t require trapping or tranquiliz- ing the animal. “These dogs have been contracted to work all over the world,” said Julianne Ubigau, a high school science teacher and eight-year veteran with the program based in the Universi- ty of Washington’s Department of Biology. For example, Chester, a golden retriever mix, returned recently from a job of snif¿ng out bear scat in the French Pyr- enees. Scooby, a black Lab mix, has been to Cambodia, Mo- zambique, the Alberta oil sands, Montana and most recently Mexico for mane wolf research. The highest pro¿le Conser- vation Canines project in the Northwest involves dogs trained to put their nose to the wind in a boat and lead researchers to col- lect the Àoating poop of endan- gered killer whales. The new project in northeast- ern Washington seeks to learn how the revival of wolves in the region inÀuences the diets of other carnivores and their prey. ‘Too crazy’ The right dogs can be trained within a couple of weeks to lead handlers to scat from speci¿c animals so sam- ples can be collected and sent to labs for analysis that can unlock secrets about wildlife dynamics. Rich Landers/The Spokesman-Review via AP Julianne Ubigau, of Conservation Canines, works with Ranger, front, and Max, back, near Usk, Wash. The shelter dogs are trained to sniff out the scat of wolves, cougars and bears. Rich Landers/The Spokesman-Review via AP Justin Broderick and Jennifer Hartman play with Chester, from left, Scooby and Max along the Pend Oreille River near Usk, Wash., June 29 The shelter dogs are trained to sniff out the scat of wolves, cougars and bears. “We take the dogs that can’t ¿nd a home because they are too crazy to be chosen for pets,” Ubigau said. “We don’t want dogs interested in poop. We want dogs that are obsessed with playing ball. These are the easiest dogs to reward and train to do the job.” One of the selection tests in- volves walking through a dog shelter holding a tennis ball. “We look for the dogs that see the ball and quiver,” Hart- man said. “Their eyes are fo- cused on the ball. Everything about them indicates they want to play with that ball.” “Then we take them outside and hide the ball,” Ubigau said. “We watch how long the dog will focus on looking for the ball. We pick a dog that has an insatiable desire to play; it would hunt for the ball to ex- haustion. That’s the dog for us. “We need dogs with a strong drive to hunt but not a strong drive for prey. Our dogs can’t be interested in chasing wildlife. Our goal is to be as noninvasive as possible.” Less biased Scat detection dogs are able to locate samples from multiple species simultaneously across large, remote areas repeatedly over time. Ubigau says sampling with detection dogs tends to be less biased than traditional wildlife detection methods such as re- mote cameras, radio-collaring, hair snags and trapping. The method can acquire more reliable information in a shorter a time. The ¿ve dogs being used in Pend Oreille County from a base near Cusick have been trained to sniff out the feces of any carnivore. “We can change that with a dog by the way we offer the re- ward, which is to play with the ball,” Ubigau said. In a project that focused on ¿shers, the handlers started by introducing the dogs to previ- ously collected ¿sher scat. “The dogs caught on fast,” she said. “Before long, we no- ticed the dogs were often walk- ing on logs because they quick- ly learned on their own that’s where they had a higher prob- ability of ¿nding ¿sher poop.” This spring, as Ubigau, Hartman and Jason Broderick began the pilot project, they trained the dogs to ¿nd scat from coyotes, wolves, bears, bobcats, lynx and cougars as well as deer, elk and moose. “We want data on predators and prey,” Ubigau said. In their ¿rst -day session this spring, the three handlers and their dogs collected , scat samples. “There’s a lot of poop out there,” she said, pointing to a freezer full of it. Now in the second of four month-long sessions, they don’t collect every pile of deer and moose droppings the dogs detect or they’d be competing with the coal trains for hopper cars to haul their load. “We’ve scaled back what we collect or we’d go broke (on the lab costs),” Hartman said. “We key the dogs more to ¿nding fresh stuff, since the lab can get more data from poop that isn’t totally dried out.” DNA analysis enables re- searchers to track individual animals and make population estimates. But much more can be determined from scat, including diseases, hormone levels that would indicate preg- nant females and diet. “The further you analyze, the more money it costs,” Hart- man said. “We have to stay in our budget.” On the ball The handlers are system- atically working the dogs in a ,-square-mile study area broken down into 66 cells, each of which measures 4.8 square miles. The dog and the handler wear GPS units that log their course. Working with Ranger, the youngest and newest dog on the team, Ubigau drove to the edge of a new cell on Monday, ¿tted the dog with a reÀective vest and guard that protects his chest from punctures when go- ing over logs. She wore a backpack with plenty of water, specimen bags, bear spray and, of course, the all-important ball. Within minutes of hiking into the forest, Ranger made his ¿rst ¿nd and sat to be noticed, his eyes locked on Ubigau until she came. Washington state vet sees chance for ZRUVHELUGÀXVHDVRQQH[WZLQWHU WSDA preps for second season with virus deadly to poultry By DON JENKINS Capital Press OLYMPIA, Wash. — Bird Àu could return next win- ter with new strains that are more prevalent in wild birds and more deadly for chickens, Washington State Veterinarian Joe Baker said Monday. “We have to be ready for the worsening scenario,” he said. The Washington State De- partment of Agriculture has been reviewing last year’s out- break and planning to prevent and respond to a reoccurrence. One lesson from last year: It could have been worse. The virus in Washington was limited to a small percentage of wild ducks and raptors, four mixed-bird backyard Àocks and a game bird farm of mostly pheasants. The outbreaks were spaced apart geographically and chronologically, keeping WSDA and the U.S. Depart- ment of Agriculture from being overwhelmed as they quaran- tined infected premises. “Frankly, compared to what happened in the Mississippi Flyway, we got off pretty easy,” Baker said. “We can’t necessar- ily count on that good fortune the next time it hits.” The ¿rst U.S. detection of highly pathogenic bird Àu was in mid-December at a lake in northwest Washington. The dis- ease appeared over the next two months throughout the West, including at two commercial poultry farms in California. Ranger works with Julianne Ubigau, of Conservation Canines, near Usk, Wash. The shelter dogs are trained to sniff out the scat of wolves, cou- gars and bears. DON JENKINS — Capital Press A goose flaps its wings last winter in the Coweeman River in southwest Washington. Migratory birds brought bird flu to Washington in mid-December 2014. State Veterinarian Joe Baker says officials need to be prepared for another outbreak this coming winter. The Western outbreaks stopped in mid-February, but the virus resurfaced in early March in the Midwest, with much more disastrous conse- quences. More than 48 million birds in states have been culled, according to the USDA. The last case was con¿rmed June in Iowa. The USDA investigated outbreaks at more than 8 com- mercial farms and concluded that while migratory birds in- troduced the virus, biosecurity lapses spread it. Equipment and humans traveled between infected barns in the country’s largest poultry producing states, the USDA reported. Also, strong and sustained winds may have spread virus particles between barns, ac- cording to the agency. Baker said he doesn’t see airborne spread as a threat in Washington because the state doesn’t have clusters of com- mercial poultry farms. More concerning is that the virus may have adapted and be- come more lethal to chickens, he said. For ¿ve weeks in the Mid- west last spring, the virus struck only turkey farms, about . The virus ¿nally infected a chicken farm in Wisconsin. Af- ter that, the disease broke out in chicken farms in several states. In Washington last winter, the virus spread among Àocks with a variety of birds. In Ben- ton County, backyard chickens remained healthy though sep- arated by only a mesh fence from an infected Àock of chick- ens, turkeys and ducks. A virus lethal to chickens may be spreading among water- fowl that spend the summer in Alaska and Canada and migrate to Washington for the winter, Baker said.“It could cause us more problems because there could be more spread (of the virus) neighbor to neighbor,” he said. It’s unclear how common bird Àu is among wild birds, which are not sickened by the virus. The USDA didn’t con- ¿rm a case of the virus in a wild bird outside the West until early March. Since then, cases in sev- eral states have been con¿rmed. In May, a dozen Canada geese tested positive in Michigan. Baker said it’s possible the disease is spreading more wide- ly now among migratory birds. He said WSDA will try to impress upon farmworkers and backyard poultry enthusiasts the importance of preventive measures. “Biosecurity is really some- thing you have to live everyday. You can’t just talk about it. You can’t just draft plans,” Baker said. WSDA has posted infor- mation about protecting Àocks from bird Àu at agr.wa.gov FoodAnimalAvianHealth Rich Landers The Spokesman-Review via AP • Residential • Commercial •Cedar Roof Treatments • Interior & Exterior By ERIC MORTENSON Capital Press Eleven farms and ranches that have been in continuous operation by the same family for years have been add- ed to the state’s list of Century Farms, the Oregon Farm Bu- reau announced. Five more farms reached the -year mark and will be hon- ored as Sesquicentennial Farms during the Oregon State Fair in August. With the additions, Oregon now has , Century Farms and Ranches and Sesquicen- tennial Farms and Ranches. The Century Farms added this year are: Cheyne Farm, Klamath County; the Louis & Anna Falk Farm and Charles Ludwig Falk Farm, both in Linn County; Hynes Farm, Marion County; Taghon Farm, Wash- ington County; Fisher Patterson Farm, Marion County; Chris- tensen Farm, Linn County; McCready Ranch, Klamath County; Padget Ranches, Sher- man County; Gentleacres, Polk County; and Bingaman Enter- prises, Union County. Sesquicentennial Farms added this year are: Mid Val- ley Farm, Washington Coun- ty; George W. Smith Ranch, Coos County; James Mon- roe Hemphill Farm, Umatilla 503-440-2169 Courtesy of Oregon Farm Bureau The George W. Smith Ranch of Coos County is among Oregon’s Sesquicentennial Farms and Ranches, plac- es that have been in con- tinuous family operation for 150 years. County; Lieuallen Century Ranches, Umatilla County; and John F. Adams Farming Enter- prise, Umatilla County. To be eligible, the farm or ranch has to have remained in continuous family operation and attain a gross income from farm use of at least , per year in at least three out of ¿ve years prior to application. Family members must live on or actively manage the farm or ranch. Documentation can include photos, original deeds, personal stories or other historic records. The program is supported by a partnership that includes the Oregon Farm Bureau the State Historic Preservation Of- ¿ce and Oregon State Universi- ty Archives. DEL’S O.K. YOUR #1 SOURCE FOR TIRES Over 20 years local experience Jeff Hale, Contractor Own style Every dog has its own style. Lab mixes tend to range a little farther ahead than cattle dog mixes, but they all get the job done. The dogs, rescued from un- certain futures at the shelters, have found a piece of heaven with Conservation Canines. Chester, for example, is getting gray in the muzzle but still looking toward a good life in retirement. “This will be his last sea- son,” Ubigau said as she let him out of his cage to exercise near the Pend Oreille River. He immediately came to a vis- itor, sat on his foot and leaned against his leg looking for a scratch. “He’ll be one of our ambas- sador dogs when we meet the public and go to science class- es at schools. He’s as good at making friends as he is at ¿nd- ing poop.” Oregon adds sesquicentennial, century farms and ranches Fre e as Est F ima t t es ll Ca ime yt n A much brush we crawl through, the bugs and weather, and then at the end of a session, when you’re the most tired, the dog will go uphill, always uphill, and ¿nd another poop.” Hartman had told the story about Scooby, on an assign- ment in Africa, ¿nding a scat as a group of impalas spooked around the dog. “They were running and jumping behind Scooby, but he just sat focused on the handler as if to say, ‘Come on; I found your poop, now let’s play ball. I don’t care about these other goofy animals.”’ Ranger was similarly focused until Ubigau ap- proached, asked him to back up, which he did, and tossed him the ball for several enthu- siastic catches. “This is what it’s all about for Ranger,” she said. The dog lay on his belly and continued to give full at- tention to Ubigau as she col- lected what she determined to be a bobcat scat and recorded the coordinates on the GPS. Then they moved on. “It’s a lot of stomping through the woods,” she said. “I’ve had people come out with me and say this is the best job in the world, follow- ing a dog through the forest. But after awhile, they change their tune when they see how LICENSED BONDED INSURED CCB#179131 • CUSTOM WHEELS • • AUTOMOTIVE SERVICES • Hours: Mon-Fri 8-6 Sat- 8-4 503-325-2861 For emergencies 503-325-0233 35359 Business Hwy 101 (miles crossing) Astoria, OR