In the wilds of Malaysia where tigers roam and poachers hunt, conservation dog handler Rita Santos and her dog Hera walk through knee-high grass searching for something that might seem odd but is actually revolutionary: animal poop. Hera was born to a stray litter in Lisbon, adopted at six months, then surrendered back to the shelter when her energy levels proved too much for her family, spending another year waiting until Santos recognized that her boundless energy would be perfect for conservation work. Trained to identify 17 different targets across seven countries, Hera helps track brown bears, wolves, sea turtle nests, grasshoppers, and lizards by finding their scat, which provides incredibly valuable information about an animal’s diet, genetics, hormone levels, parasites, and health without any direct contact.
For decades, conservation relied on physically locating animals through live trapping or camera setups, but dogs like Hera have revolutionized the field by enabling researchers to study elusive species through scent detection in more non-invasive ways. One scat sample can tell scientists everything they need to know about an animal’s overall health and presence in an area, making this unconventional approach far more efficient and safer for both researchers and wildlife. Santos credits her relationship with Hera for making her a better, calmer person, as the dog she originally intended to be a “spare” for another working dog ended up doing entire projects herself and becoming the center of Santos’ world. Their partnership proves that sometimes the dogs rejected for having too much energy are exactly the heroes conservation efforts need, turning what one family saw as a problem into a solution that’s helping save endangered species across the globe.
