Passage IV

Lily's Mission：Dyer's Woad

Lily barks as she turns in a circle. Then she sits down, patiently waiting for her handler, conservationist Aimee Hurt. The yellow Labrador retriever's actions tell Hurt that Lily has detected dyer's woad, the invasive weed the two are searching for the wildflower-speckled hillside of Mount Sentinel in Montana. Lily’s actions also triggers the GPS unit attached to her harness to record the dog‘s precise location. Once Hurt catches up to Lily, the retriever gets ready for what's next. Hurt can then find the one-inch-tall plant, pulling it up as she watches, anticipating her reward. In a few weeks, the team will return to the spot to confirm that the weed has not resprouted.

Lily is one of several dogs on the crew of Working Dogs for Conservation, a nonprofit organization based in Three Forks, Montana. The group trains dogs and works with humans on a variety of conservation-related initiatives. In 2010, the organization from the state joined one of Montana's longest-running projects to eradicate dyer's woad. Since the 1950s, the hardy, fast-growing weed has choked out native plants and overrun wildlife habitats in several Montana counties.(53) Specially trained dogs can dig out the tiny, young specimens of dyer's woad that humans often miss. With the dogs' help, conservationists are better able to locate and remove woad; before it matures and reproduces, releasing thousands of seeds.

Hurt thanks Lily by tossing a tennis ball for her to chase; Lily's long-time favorite reward for identifying the scent of dyer's woad. A former shelter dog now living with one of her handlers, Lily was assigned to the dyer's woad project for her ability much like a police dog's to ignore all other scents while she is working. After Lily returns with her ball, she and Hurt continue on their search. Lily's nose, like the noses of a small number of other conservation dogs, has helped humans find a new way to strengthen their bonds with dogs.