Dogs That Smell Bees

About Bees, Culture & Curiosity

Season 1 Episode 8: About Bees, Culture & Curiosity Podcast - Dogs That Smell

We talk with Rose-Anne Bouffard, a bee enthusiast who trains dogs to find and rescue wayward bumblebee nests and to locate colonies with American Foulbrood (AFB).

Dog breeds and their amazing scent sensitivity are discussed. Bloodhounds are best for sniffing out bumblebee nests and honeybee diseases, but that's not what Rose uses. Humans have million scent receptors and can smell AFB, but dogs have thirty million receptors. Dogs also use their floppy ears to stir up scents. The bee-rescuing dogs were trained through find-reward-repeat sessions. We discuss training a tracking dog to find AFB and the huge economic value that brings.

Talking about stings, Rose finds that controlling her breath and going into a meditative state when working around bees is essential. Without the proper mindset, apparently Preparation H helps with the bee stings you will get.

The questions of bee consciousness and a bees' ability to sense pain come up. We agree that bees probably feel pain.

Finally, there is a big shout out to Alberta Native Bee Council, the Suzuki Butterflyway Project, iNaturalist, and the urgency for action. Rose's bee and dog projects are looking for collaborators so check out her website to learn how to get involved!

Rose's website address for Dogs Find Bees is https://dogsfindbees.com/ Let's go!

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