Today we’d like to introduce you to Kayla Fratt.
Hi Kayla, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
I first heard about conservation detection dogs when I was studying ecology at Colorado College. I’d always wanted to be a biologist like Jane Goodall, but realized that nowadays ecology tends to be more about modeling and fieldwork than following chimps through the jungle. I had been training dogs for a few years as a side gig to pay rent, so when I heard about dogs being trained to help biologists find their samples I knew I’d found a great fit. I spent several years working in related fields, trying to get enough experience to get hired. About four years later, I finally was offered a job in the field. I spent 18 months training dogs to work on amazing projects around the world as well as doing outreach, media, and fieldwork with my own dog. I started my own nonprofit in 2021. Now I run that nonprofit, where we focus on helping other programs reach their goals with conservation detection dogs.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
It has been a tough road to get here. When I first heard about the field and wanted to get involved, I was repeatedly ignored or told “no thank you” when I tried to get volunteer or internship positions. It was incredibly discouraging. When I finally did get a job in the field, it was in communications and outreach rather than the field biologist position I really wanted. It took time to work my way into a job description and duties that I preferred. Shortly after that, I lost my job in November 2020. It was the height of the Delta wave and I had no idea how I’d get work in the field again. I was devastated and scared. I didn’t feel ready to start my own organization yet, but I felt that I had no other choice if I wanted to stay involved.
As you know, we’re big fans of K9 Conservationists. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about the brand?
K9 Conservationists train high-energy rescue dogs to sniff out samples for biologists. Our dog-scientist teams help collect scat for genetic samples, bat carcasses to monitor wind farm impacts, and invasive plants for removal among other projects related to ecology and conservation. We are also highly dedicated to both capacity building and education. This field can be incredibly competitive and there is very little education or support available. We aim to change that through low-cost and even free education. To that end, we donate time to international programs, offer a free podcast and blog, and teach online courses and webinars all to help more people utilize dogs to fight biodiversity loss and climate change.
So, before we go, how can our readers or others connect or collaborate with you? How can they support you?
We are actively looking for board members with a variety of backgrounds and would be thrilled to hear from interested parties. We are always looking for land managers, researchers, biologists, and other NGOs to partner with for fieldwork, research, and other collaborations. Finally, we are a 501(c)3 nonprofit and none of the three co-founders currently receives any pay; donations and corporate sponsorships are sorely needed so that we can dedicate more time to the work and less time to our other jobs.
Contact Info:
- Website: K9Conservationists.org
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/k9.conservationists/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/k9conservationists
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/kaylafratt
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLWdUYJj9_upDuJ0ZdTV3uA
- SoundCloud: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/k9-conservationists/id1451997691
- Other: https://www.patreon.com/k9conservationists
