K9 Conservationists

K9 Conservationists Professional conservation detection dog teams collecting data for researchers and committed to making an impact.

Yesterday, we said goodbye to Barley 🖤Today, we gather to honor his extraordinary life, career, and legacy in conservati...
08/30/2026

Yesterday, we said goodbye to Barley 🖤

Today, we gather to honor his extraordinary life, career, and legacy in conservation detection—and to give him the Dogtorate he has more than earned. 🎓

At 6:30 PM Pacific today, August 30, we’ll come together in Corvallis, OR and online via Zoom to honor Barley’s extraordinary life, career, and contributions to conservation.

Barley has led us to the scent of science across 8 states and 2 countries. He’s found zebra mussels, Dyer’s woad, black-footed ferrets, birds and bats carcasses, and the s**t of pumas, ocelots, margays, tayras, jaguarundis, bobcats, wolves, martens, and coyotes.

We’ve always said that Barley should be the primary co-author of my doctorate, and that he deserved his own cap and gown when I defend, given the magnitude of his contributions, especially to the Island Wolf Project.

In person: Corvallis, OR at 6:30 PM Pacific
The gathering will be hosted at a large indoor dog training arena. A huge thank you to WonderDogs for making this possible.

Online: We know Barley has fans around the world, so you can join us via Zoom at: bit.ly/4gb4Ckl

We know there will be tears today. But we hope this gathering can also be a reminder of just how much Barley accomplished, how many lives he touched, and how much he gave to conservation.

Thank you for loving Barley, believing in him, and supporting the work he helped make possible. We’d be honored to have you join us as we honor his legacy. 🐾

Barley has been the heart, soul, nose (and tongue) of K9 Conservationists since day 1. He loves work and loves to show u...
08/26/2026

Barley has been the heart, soul, nose (and tongue) of K9 Conservationists since day 1. He loves work and loves to show us exactly what his border collie brain can do. He's almost always been a few steps ahead of us, trying to figure out the patterns that earn him his paycheck.

More than a working dog, Barley has been a teacher, a research partner, a mentor, and an ambassador for ethical use of conservation detection dogs. Over the course of his career, he has helped scientists study wildlife across North America while showing thousands of people what's possible when dogs and science work together.

To those who know him personally, though, he's something else entirely: Opinionated. Brilliant. Hilariously expressive. Completely convinced that every toy, stick, log, or pinecone belongs to him and every adventure exists for his antics.

We're so proud of Barley's career and legacy. As we move through the sunset of his life, we wanted to celebrate his entire life and career. You can explore his life and timeline at the website below, which is entirely dedicated to his life and legacy.

k9c-barley.my.canva.site/long-live-the-king/

As a quick reminder, check out our recent posts to contribute to the auction or RSVP to his Dogtorate Ceremony. Thank you all for your support. He sends big tail wags.

The time has come for Barley to earn his Dogtorate. 🎓We are celebrating his contributions to conservation in-person in C...
08/24/2026

The time has come for Barley to earn his Dogtorate. 🎓

We are celebrating his contributions to conservation in-person in Corvallis, OR and online via Zoom at 6:30pm Pacific time on August 30. We would love for you to join us in honoring his legacy. Barley has led us to the scent of science across 8 states and two countries; he's found zebra mussels, Dyer's woad, black-footed ferrets, dead birds and bats, and the s**t of pumas, ocelots, margays, tayras, jaguarundis, bobcats, wolves, martens, and coyotes. We've always said that he should be the primary co-author of my doctorate and deserves his own cap and gown when I defend given the magnitude of contributions he's made specifically to the Island Wolf Project.

The celebration will be hosted at a large indoor dog training arena in Corvallis (THANK YOU to WonderDogs). Please RSVP at forms.gle/dXwzL8fNXvYLbrFf7 if you're attending in person. The actual address is in the RSVP form. We will provide salmon, salad, lemonade, and a potato dish. Feel free to bring cards, flowers, or dog toys but please leave your dog at home.

We know that Barley has fans around the world. If you cannot make it in person, you can Zoom into his ceremony at bit.ly/4gb4Ckl.

We'd love to see you there. We feel your love and appreciate your support. There may be a lot of tears on August 30, but we hope that this can truly feel like a celebration of a life and career that left nothing on the table.

08/24/2026

Keeping our working dog's teeth clean is super important! Skipper gets extra-special dental powder thanks to PetLab Co. His bite is off, which means his teeth don't scissor correctly and self-clean as well as the could. This daily powder is part of our arsenal for keeping his mouth clean and healthy.

The online auction to support Barley's cancer care kicks off on August 26 and runs through September 10. We have art, do...
08/23/2026

The online auction to support Barley's cancer care kicks off on August 26 and runs through September 10. We have art, dog apparel, and BUOYS! If you have anything you'd like to contribute, please let us know before August 26 so we can add your donation. Thank you in advance.

We know many of y'all have been envious of the buoys as dog toys. Your chance to have your own is coming soon!

https://www.zeffy.com/en-US/ticketing/barleys-beach-buoys

Can you spot the turtle? In high temperatures, turtles seek refuge in shady or wet areas. This Eastern box turtle was hi...
08/17/2026

Can you spot the turtle? In high temperatures, turtles seek refuge in shady or wet areas. This Eastern box turtle was hiding under leaves. Niffler and Vara were trained to pinpoint targets with their nose using a “show me” cue if their typical alert (lying down about 1 foot from the target or standing and freezing) isn’t clear enough. By the last week of the project, both Niffler and Vara were finding turtles "in form" – partially buried in sandy soil and covered in leaves – as well as turtles on the move. Having our conservation dogs pinpointing turtles like this is invaluable to the project, since these turtles would be especially hard to find with a visual-only survey!

Huge thank you to all of the volunteers, grad students, and researchers on this project. We’d in particular love to shout out the host families that gave our team a place to stay during the project: thanks to Andy Gieselman & David McKinney and Larry & Amy Underwood. Finally, thank you to the neighbors of the Nature Center who gave us permission to survey across property lines that the turtles would not acknowledge. These neighbors, and the whole team, help keep an eye on the turtles and support them.

A little update on our King B 👑Barley has not responded to chemotherapy the way we’d hoped. We had a good conversation w...
08/16/2026

A little update on our King B 👑

Barley has not responded to chemotherapy the way we’d hoped. We had a good conversation with his oncologist, and we’re trying a couple of things. Right now, our focus is simple: keep Barley comfortable and help him feel like himself for as long as we can. We’re working to reduce the swelling in his throat and chest, and we’ll take things from there.

And so far, he’s feeling much better. ❤️ The swelling is down, his appetite is up, and he’s enjoying walks, fetch, and swimming. And, naturally, he’s still carrying around enormous logs at every possible opportunity.

The hard part is that, even if everything goes as well as we hope, we’re still likely looking at weeks rather than months as we had hoped.

We’re also postponing Barley’s Dogtorate Ceremony until August 30. The ceremony is about celebrating Barley—but, ultimately, it’s for us. If he’s here and feeling good enough to celebrate, we’ll celebrate. If he isn’t, then we’ll make the decision that’s right for him. For now, we’re just soaking up the time we have with him.

In this week's podcast episode, we’re checking in on what’s happening across K9 Conservationists, sharing a few updates ...
08/15/2026

In this week's podcast episode, we’re checking in on what’s happening across K9 Conservationists, sharing a few updates from our team and the field, and talking about what’s ahead for the podcast.

👑 Long Live the King
As we've shared about Barley's recent cancer diagnosis, in this podcast Kayla takes some time to celebrate Barley and share more of his story. We created a special website dedicated to The King, bringing together his adventures, accomplishments, memories, and the many ways he’s made an impact on our lives and work he loves.
🔗 https://k9c-barley.my.canva.site/long-live-the-king

🎓 What’s next for the podcast?
As Kayla moves into a deeper focus on her PhD research, the podcast is evolving too. She talks about what you can expect from upcoming episodes—including bringing more of that research, science, and the questions Kayla is exploring through her PhD into conversations on the podcast.

🎧 Listen to the latest episode wherever you get your podcasts.

First day of work vs. last day of work (for now). When I first fit Skipper with his work harness, I marveled at how brig...
08/10/2026

First day of work vs. last day of work (for now). When I first fit Skipper with his work harness, I marveled at how bright it looked compared to Barley and Niffler's. Its cleanliness advertised his newness.

Not anymore!

Skipper has absolutely blown us away this summer. He works with a joy and intensity that is something to behold. He's still an "apprentice" dog within our program, but that time is fast coming to a close. This summer he located nearly 400 wolf s**ts and over 150 marten s**ts. He learned to navigate a wide variety of terrain, source odor in complex environments, and hold his alert even as his handler is out-of sight and crashing blindly through the vegetation. He has kept a cool head around deer, cranes, grouse, otters, seals, and even bears at a distance. He works closely with his handler, navigates downed trees with ease, and sleeps like a baby on the boat.

We couldn't be more proud of him and cannot wait for his future. He's a real gem; a testament to thorough selection protocols, solid foundation training, and the enthusiastic work ethic that defines his breed.

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