Dog Spends His Days Standing In Water And Sniffing Out Invasive Mussels

The past week was nothing short of effort and toil at the Evanston Port of Entry. More than 2000 kayaks, boats, and various watercrafts underwent evaluation by technicians under the Wyoming Game and Fish Aquatic Invasive Species (AIS) prevention team.

In a surprising twist, the human technicians worked diligently for days on end alongside; Barnacle, a mussel-sniffing dog. 5-year-old black Labrador, Barnacle, came to Evanston for a five-day visit with his parent and trainer Debi DeShon; in which they previously spent five weeks in Texas inspecting other watercrafts. DeShon co-owns an Oakdale, California-based canine detection business known as; Mussel Dogs and Dogs With Jobs.

It began business in the mid-1990s but has blossomed in its invasive mussel detection training. Invasive mussels cause a significant ecological impact in aquatic environments and if present on beaches can cause injury on bare feet as they tend to be sharp. Due to the extent of concern regarding invasive mussel species, it took DeShon a long time to get a permit to receive the mussels and then to train her dogs.

Barnacle, being one of 10 hard-working dogs on the team that weekend, managed to detect over a dozen spots of standing water where the invasive mussels breed excessively. After he sniffs them out in the watercraft, they are then decontaminated with very hot high-pressure water to kill off the invaders. While some watercraft owners aren’t too thrilled about inspection, efforts like that of Debi, Barnacle, and the rest of his team aid in educating the public on the menace of the invasive mussels.

The past week was nothing short of effort and toil at the Evanston Port of Entry. More than 2000 kayaks, boats, and various watercraft underwent evaluation by technicians under the Wyoming Game and Fish Aquatic Invasive Species (AIS) prevention team.

Feature Image Source: Pixabay