DNR K9 Team Demonstrates Zebra Mussel Detection

DULUTH, Minn. – The Two Harbors, Minnesota Department of Natural Resources’ newest K9 team gave a demonstration at McQuade Harbor, showcasing how they utilize a detection dog’s powerful sense of smell to locate invasive zebra mussels on boats.

Conservation Officer Cassie Block was recently partnered with Jet, a specially trained four-year-old black lab. Jet is one of the Minnesota DNR’s detection dogs, trained to sniff out everything from hidden wild game to invasive species.

“He is trained in detection things that Jet can smell, includes zebra muscles, wild game, ducks, geese, pheasant, grouse, turkey, and venison,” said Block. “Jets also trained in tracking human odor and finding articles and different evidence such as firearms and shell casings.”

There are a total of eight K9 teams across Minnesota, and five of them are trained specifically to detect zebra mussels, making them a vital tool in protecting the state’s waterways from invasive species.

“A typical day, we could spend a lot of time just at a boat launch, talking to boaters as they’re coming in, making sure boats are cleaned, even the outgoing boaters, too. If a boat’s been in the water for a long time, there’s a better chance it’ll have zebra mussels on it,” said Block.

Boating season is in full swing, and DNR Conservation Officers strive to protect Minnesota’s natural resources through public education and enforcement of conservation and environmental laws.

“Zebra mussels are a prohibited invasive species,” said Block. “They can do a lot of damage to our lakes. What they do is they filter out a lot of the small particles of food that the tiny fish would eat. The bigger fish eat those tiny fish. And you can imagine it scales upward. If there’s no small food to start, there’s going to be no big food at the end.”

Locals may receive a friendly visit from Jet, who’s hard at work helping to keep these invasive species out of Minnesota’s lakes and protecting our natural resources.