The Nature Conservancy

Ruger, Yogi, and Skeeter are unfazed by the on-again, off-again rain this chilly morning. The three Boykin spaniels have a job to do – and it’s obvious from their wagging tails and enthusiastic trotting that they love their occupation.
“Find turtle! Find turtle!” shouts the dogs’ owner and trainer, John Rucker. And the three chocolate-colored dogs are off again, scampering through the prairie at Illinois’ TNC’s Nachusa Grasslands Preserve in Lee County, pausing every few feet to sniff a fallen branch or the roots of native grasses.