Photos courtesy Minnesota Department of Natural Resources

A specially-trained dog employed by the Department of Natural Resources recently helped prevent potential contamination of the St. Croix River with non-native mussels. Molly, a yellow lab, only recently received certification and was on her first day in the field with her handler, conservation officer Matt Brodin, on May 23 when she performed an inspection of a pontoon that was about to be launched in the river.

Molly quickly smelled zebra mussels, the non-native invasive species that have degraded many of Minnesota’s waters and damaged boats, docks, and more. She alerted Brodin to the issue, and her handler helped decontaminate the boat before it was put in the water.

“Our K9s and their handlers work hard to protect Minnesota’s people and natural resources – and this was a great start to Molly’s career!” the DNR said.

The Minnesota DNR has expanded its K-9 roster significantly in recent years. There are currently eight active dog-handler teams working around the state, and more are in training. They are trained to detect invasive species, assist with search and rescue, find evidence, and more.

“The dogs not only augment and enhance the work of our conservation officers, but they’re also able to find items that humans might never be able to locate,” Phil Mohs, leader of the unit, said in a recent Minnesota Conservation Volunteer article. “And people really connect with dogs, so they’re important ambassadors for the DNR and the work we do.”

The St. Croix below the Boom Site is designated as infested with zebra mussels. Their numbers rise and fall depending on environmental conditions. While the river is home to a world-class 41 species of native mussels, zebra mussels threaten boats, people, and the ecosystem.

The invasive mussels were first found in the United States in 1988 and on boats in the St. Croix in 1995. Reproducing populations were discovered in 2000, and the population has ebbed and flowed ever since.