122 Texas K9 Teams – With Royce Ilse, Kevin Winters & Joni Owen

Since the early 20th century, the term “K9” has stood as both a clever play on words and a symbol of unity and partnership between law enforcement officers and their four-legged companions. Recognizing their increasingly valuable contributions to public service, the Conservation Canine Officers Association (CCOA) was founded in 2020 to promote professional development and support for conservation canine teams in North America and beyond. From the CCOA’s annual conference in Newry, Maine, we sit down with Texas wardens and K9 handlers Royce Ilse, Kevin Winters, and Joni Owen to explore the world of conservation K9 handling, the roots and growth of the CCOA, and more! Our Sponsors: Thin Green Line Podcast Don Noyes Chevrolet North American Game Warden Museum Sovereign Sportsman Solutions “A Cowboy in the Woods” Book Hunt of a Lifetime Maine's Operation Game Thief Wildlife Heritage Foundation of NH International Wildlife Crimestoppers Here’s what we discuss: Texas K9 officers are currently Labrador Retrievers and German Shepherds Different K9s are trained in different specialties Dogs will provide both obvious and subtle cues when alerting Received training in Utah Currently seven trained conservation K9s in the state Membership in CCOA has helped build connections Training a cadaver dog K9s can distinguish between human and animal remains Giving up a K9 partner Building partnerships at the state and federal level The first shark fin case in San Antonio Training to differentiate between different species and cuts of fish How boat inspections are conducted Combatting the illegal sea turtle trade CCOA is on Facebook Hopes for the future of the organization K9s can be used in multiple complex situations Kevin’s hat! Support the CCOA Credits Hosts: Wayne Saunders and John Nores Producer: Jay Ammann Art & Design: Ashley Hannett Research / Content Coordinator: Stacey DesRoches Subscribe: Apple Podcasts Spotify Amazon Google Waypoint Stitcher TuneIn Megaphone Find More Here: Website Warden’s Watch / TGL Store Facebook Facebook Fan Page Instagram Twitter YouTube RSS Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices