How collecting mountain lion poop helps protect the big cats

Mountain lions are elusive beasts, often traveling alone, undetected at night. Their very nature makes them difficult to count.

The scat they leave behind, though, that's something an obsessive, tail-wagging dog can easily (and inexpensively) find with the right training. Collecting the poop found by those scat-sniffing dogs gives California officials another tool as they embark on a multi-year project to count cougars. 

California has traditionally relied on collaring to track animals, but as scat dogs have become more popular in conservation research, the state with the largest mountain lion habitat is now testing the method for itself.  Read more...

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