Walnut was generously donated to SDF by Kaiser K9, Inc., and arrived on campus full of excitement and ready to get to work! His trainers were immediately enamored with this adorable, charming Lab, and he earned the affectionate nickname “Woo-Nut” because he couldn’t help but woo all his trainers with his sweet face!
Though Walnut showed promise early on in his training, as he progressed further into our search program, his motivation began to wane. Trainers worked to build his motivation and confidence on the rubble pile, but despite their efforts, he just didn’t seem to possess the intensity and drive that indicate a passion for search. With Walnut’s interests in mind, we decided to help him find a fitting career or home where he could thrive!
Soon after, Walnut headed to our career change partners at K9 InSCENTive, LLC to try his paw at conservation detection work with Lauralea Oliver, a professional ecology detection dog handler and trainer. Walnut enjoyed many aspects of that work, but while he came close to landing the gig as an ecological detection K9, he ultimately decided that a full-time career was not for him.
Walnut was made available for adoption, and we were thrilled when he was scooped up by a wonderful adopter who happens to be a nose work and dog sport trainer! With the help of his dog mom, Walnut spent the last year learning to detect Western Pond Turtle nests for the National Park Service where he and his mom volunteer. The pair completed their first nest surveys this past spring and summer, and participated in additional turtle surveys in Yosemite during the fall. As it turns out, this part-time gig is perfect for Walnut—he enjoys the less rigorous schedule, and still gets to utilize his stellar detection skills to help protect pond turtle nests from predators!
When he’s not volunteering, Walnut loves to snuggle and play with his two dog siblings—a Golden Retriever sister and a Lab brother—and he stays super active thanks to his many fun hobbies. Some of his favorite pastimes include swimming and shed hunting—an activity that involves helping his humans forage for deer and elk antlers that have been naturally shed in the wild.
Walnut also enjoys sport scent detection, and unsurprisingly—he’s great at it! Through the National Association of Canine Scent Work (NACSW), he passed his odor recognition test (ORT) and earned his NW1, NW2 and NW3 titles, as well as his Level 1 and Level 2 Interior titles! Upon earning his NW3 title in October, he also earned his first NW3 Qualifying Score—way to go, Walnut!
On top of everything else, there’s even more fun on the horizon for Walnut and his mom, with plans to continue pursuing NACSW K9 Nose Work titles and hopes of participating in dock diving competitions next summer. We are so happy to see Walnut living a life he loves, with a family who adores him, and we look forward to hearing about all of his adventures to come!
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