Four Paws for the Earth, One Nose for the Future

In the early morning quiet of California's scrubland, Alice Whitelaw watches Camas work. The German Shepherd moves with purpose, nose to ground, until suddenly she freezes. Her ears prick forward, focused on an unremarkable patch of earth, a subtle alert that speaks volumes.

Together, they're out collecting Kit Fox scat - genetic samples from the federally endangered San Joaquin Kit Fox - but Camas has found something unexpected: fox urine, something she was never trained to detect. “She would alert as if to say, ‘And this... don't you want to know about this?’” Alice recalls fondly. It's moments like these that capture the extraordinary intelligence that defined their partnership.

“She was amazing,” she says, pointing to an artistic rendering on the wall. Camas, her beloved pet turned preservation pioneer, helped change the course of conservation science and build the foundation for a methodology now used globally.

Alice's approach to working with animals as partners was shaped by her Miami childhood, which fostered a natural connection to flora and fauna. Her father encouraged outdoor exploration, from nursing fallen birds back to health to tracking snakes.

This wildlife affinity led to training as a veterinary technologist, followed by a focus on wolf biology in Minnesota, before becoming Idaho's state wolf field biologist during the historic Yellowstone reintroduction program. But a humbling realisation awaited when non-invasive monitoring methods emerged. “I thought I was really good at finding wolf poop,” Alice chuckles. “Then, I trained my dog to it and I realised I sucked!” That moment sparked the pioneering use of dogs for conservation science.

Alice started this work in 1998, and in 2000, she and three other conservationists founded Working Dogs for Conservation. Initially, her team of four (alongside their canine companions) faced scepticism from the scientific community, who dismissed them as “the girls and their dogs”. But the results spoke for themselves. “We started trying all kinds of different things… from invasive plants to invasive aquatic species. And the dogs excelled at everything we put them to.”

The magic wasn't in forcing compliance; it was understanding their motivation. WD4C selects rescue dogs and career-change canines that are too energetic for families or who have flunked disaster training. The essential trait is toy obsession. “It's all based on a game,” she explains. “We introduce a scent, and the reward for smelling that scent is the toy. Immediately, you get the toy and we're gonna play.” With 220 million scent receptors, dogs can detect a teaspoon of sugar in a million gallons of water.

To date, Working Dogs for Conservation has operated across six continents (in 36 countries), with on-the-ground projects and consulting, and has over 35 active dogs and 20 staff members. Their canine conservation projects fall into four operational pillars: ecological monitoring, law enforcement, biosecurity, and environmental justice.

Ecological monitoring involves dogs searching for animal scat for genetic analysis, providing crucial data on population and habitat. In Montana's Centennial Mountains, teams have detected elusive species, including black bears, grizzlies, wolves, and mountain lions. “With what the dogs were able to accomplish in a four-year period, we had enough data to stop the development of a large golf course and a 1,500-home development. It would have been right in the middle of their habitat.”

Law enforcement operations showcase dramatic applications across Africa, where dogs detect guns, ammunition, ivory, rhino horn, and bushmeat while tracking poachers over distances that can stretch up to 25 kilometres. Local communities have welcomed WD4C in their fight for conservation. “They are passionate about the use of dogs to help them protect wildlife,” Alice explains.

The deterrent effect has been immediate. In a targeted area in Namibia, where the illegal killing of rhinos escalated in early 2024, dogs helped shut down poaching activity. With the incredible partnership between the local authorities and WD4C training, the canine units achieved a breakthrough. "They were able to arrest two individuals, obtain cell phones and information about the syndicate and completely shut it down," Alice explains. Since the intervention, rhino killings in that region have dropped to zero, with WD4C hoping to return to expand those efforts even further.

Biosecurity work focuses on early detection to prevent ecological damage. Teams patrol ports and container ships, searching for invasive plants before they emerge from the soil, invasive insects, and aquatic species. The precision required is extraordinary; they’re even able to distinguish invasive sugar cane seeds from native varieties among countless other scents.

Environmental justice efforts partner with underserved and Indigenous communities. Recent work includes a first-of-its-kind contaminant study where dogs and handlers locate scat from sentinel species for lab analysis to detect heavy metals, pharmaceuticals, flame retardants, and more. This data reveals ecosystem health, crucial information for areas where traditional foods and medicines are harvested. The study is completely noninvasive thanks to the dogs and incorporates Traditional Ecological Knowledge.

Despite these successes across all four operational pillars, funding remains the organisation's biggest challenge. “It always has been. But especially right now.”

For Alice, however, it's the dogs that keep her going. “I'm probably gonna cry before I get done with all of this,” she says quietly. “I always do. They just mean so much.” This recognition of partnership transcends typical working relationships. “You can't make a dog do this work and be successful. They have to love it. And they have to love being with you.”

After 25 years, Alice maintains the wonder of that first moment with Camas - recognition that dogs see patterns and make connections beyond their training. “You learn something every time you go to work. It's a constant learning process.”

When WD4C began, only three U.S. organisations did this work. Now it's global.

“The method has gained a reputation for being solid scientifically, which is a huge accomplishment,” she says. “I feel like we've proved that, and being part of that is pretty cool.”

From Camas's first intuitive alert to conservation breakthroughs worldwide, the ancient partnership between humans and dogs may help solve climate challenges we haven’t even thought of yet.