Meet the Oregon State Police Wildlife Conservation K-9 Teams at the OWF Gift Shop in Bonneville

Oregon Wildlife Foundation (OWF) and the Fish & Wildlife Division of the Oregon State Police (OSP) are giving new meaning to the phrase “dog days of summer'' by inviting you to meet the OSP Wildlife Conservation K-9 teams between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. on Sunday, June 29, at the OWF Gift Shop at Bonneville Fish Hatchery in the Columbia River Gorge.

Visitors will meet Senior Trooper Josh Wolcott and his K-9 partner Buck and Trooper Shae Ross and his K-9 partner, Scout. This is an opportunity to meet the teams and learn more about how they fight poaching in Oregon. While there, consider having a Buck and Scout Drink Special and or picking up a Buck or a Scout stuffie. All donations at checkout during the month of July are dedicated to the Foundation’s OSP Conservation K-9 Team Fund. 

OWF, in partnership with OSP, launched Oregon’s first Wildlife Conservation K-9 team in 2019. Senior Trooper Wolcott and Buck have conducted numerous poaching investigations and logged hundreds of hours in the field since the program’s beginning. Senior Trooper Wolcott and Buck work from OSP’s Springfield Area Command but have worked multiple regions in Oregon.

The effectiveness of the first K-9 team led OSP leadership to approve a second team in January of 2023. The newest team works from OSP Area Command in Bend but have also been deployed to other regions at various times. OWF and its donors financed most of the costs of the program’s first two teams. Ongoing K-9 expenses, primarily veterinary care, are funded by donations from the public to the OSP Conservation K-9 Team Fund. To learn more or to make a supporting donation, visit the Team webpage at https://myowf.org/osp-conservation-k9-team 

Poaching in Oregon

Oregon and all other states adhere to the North American Model of Wildlife Conservation, which operates on seven interdependent  principles, including ‘wildlife resources are conserved and held in trust for all citizens’ and ‘wildlife may only be killed for a legitimate, non-frivolous purpose.’ Our wildlife laws, including those that make poaching illegal, are rooted in this model of conservation.

Poaching is the illegal taking of birds, wildlife and fish. Poaching also includes habitat destruction. 

According to the Oregon Department of Fish & Wildlife’s (ODFW) Stop Poaching webpage, “Poaching can take many forms. Shooting a raptor. Keeping fish out of season. Sharing tags. Exceeding bag limits. People working the system to get resident licenses or tags when they aren’t residents are also poaching.”

ODFW partners with OSP to enforce our wildlife laws. Only the states of Oregon and Alaska work in this way; all other state wildlife agencies employ their own game wardens. The OSP Wildlife Conservation K-9 teams are an essential tool in our fight against poaching. Hundreds of poached animals and fish are recovered each year, which represents only a fraction of the total lost to poaching in Oregon.

Fish and wildlife managers and law enforcement officials rely on assistance from the public to report poaching and suspicious activities. To report crimes against fish, wildlife or habitat, please use the Turn In Poachers (TIP) line, 1-800-452-7888 or *OSP (*677) from a mobile phone. You can also provide information via email: TIP@osp.oregon.gov.

Oregon Wildlife Foundation

Oregon Wildlife Foundation is an apolitical operating charitable foundation dedicated to increasing private and public funding support for wildlife conservation projects in Oregon. Since their founding in 1981, OWF has directed tens of millions of dollars in private and public support to a broad range of projects throughout Oregon. For more information visit www.myowf.org.