The St. Louis Zoo has hired John Rucker and his team of Boykin Spaniels that are specially-trained to locate turtles in an effort to survey the local turtle population. The study is specifically attempting to identify the effects of the Ranavirus, which was recently discovered in the native Three Toed Box Turtle. David Kovaluk / St. Louis Public Radio Originally published on April 22, 2021 8:03 am Three-toed box turtles are hard to spot with the naked eye, but a finely tuned nose can often do the trick. That's why researchers with the St. Louis Zoo’s Institute for Conservation Health hired a pack of dark brown, curly haired Boykin spaniels for a treasure hunt of sorts this week in a Spanish Lake wildlife park.