(Wahpeton)– Man’s best friend could soon join efforts to keep zebra mussels out of the Iowa Great Lakes.
Phil Petersen of the Okoboji Protective Association tells KUOO news they and other lakes area protective associations have been in contact with a California company that specializes in dogs trained to detect zebra mussels, similar to how dogs are trained to detect drugs…Click here to hear mp3 file
Petersen says they were impressed with what they saw, adding the dogs are even more thorough than human beings in detecting the mussels…Click here to hear mp3 file
Petersen says they would like to bring two of the specially trained dogs to the Iowa Great Lakes this coming summer. He says doing that, though, won’t be cheap. He says the cost of the two dogs, along with handlers, has been put at roughly $45,000…Click here to hear mp3 file
Petersen says they’re in the process now of applying for grants and seeking contributions. Anyone interested in donating should contact the Okoboji Protective Association or the Iowa Great Lakes Association, both of whom have active websites.
Petersen says they need to have funding in place by early March in order to procure the dogs and have them trained. He says two people have already stepped forward to volunteer to handle the dogs. Petersen says the dogs would likely be placed at two of the area’s busiest boat ramps–at Emerson Bay on West Lake Okoboji and the Highways 9 and 71 boat ramp on East Lake Okoboji on the east side of Spirit Lake.
