• Updated: 14/05/2021 - 14:39 Boykin spaniels have become an unlikely ally in the fight to save ornate box turtles. The specially trained dogs can sniff out the turtles, thereby allowing conservationists to carry out health assessments on the animals. The four-legged volunteers can sniff out 2.5 turtles per search hour, compared to the one turtle every four or five hours for a biologist. “The dogs have been immensely beneficial in finding the turtles at a much faster rate than we can. They are a tremendous tool for conservation”, says Dr. Matt Allender, Chicago Zoological Society clinical veterinarian and director of the University of Illinois Wildlife Epidemiology Laboratory.