Certified And Cheeky: Meet Ronnie, Auckland Council's Newest Conservation Canine
This two-year-old hire is a rowdy teenager with a full-time job, and he's fully vetted to protect Hauraki Gulf's precious pest-free islands from unwanted intruders.
Recently graduated with full certification from the Conservation Dog Programme, Ronnie has officially proven he has what it takes to sniff out rats – and mice and only rats and mice – in Auckland's most sensitive native environments.
After passing rigorous training with the national programme, Ronnie is trusted to work on pest-free islands alongside our native species. This canine crusader is now the real deal.
Auckland Council's Biosecurity Advisor and handler Rochelle says Ronnie is like a cheeky teenager with a job he happens to be excellent at.
'He's playful, energetic, and sometimes tries to test the rules, but when it's time to work, he's laser focused. He's trained hard for this, and he's earned it.'
Born on Great Barrier Island, Ronnie is the son of conservation royalty. His mum, Juno, is a smooth-coated fox terrier ratter, and his dad, Tane, a scruffy Waiheke-based border terrier, bred for stoat detection. Ronnie's sleek black coat with a splash of grey on his chin and paws makes him stand out, a bit of a mystery, but unmistakably handsome.
He came into Rochelle's care at 16 months and has since lived a very social life with his mentor and canine flat mates: Rosie the seasoned 8-year-old terrier cross rat detector (whom Ronnie will eventually succeed), and Aria the retired airport beagle who, along with Rochelle's three teenage sons, keep Ronnie's feet somewhat on the ground.
A typical day for Ronnie starts with tail wags and excitement as he heads to work with Rochelle. Whether it's inspecting vehicles and gear at ferry terminals destined for Waiheke, Aotea / Great Barrier or patrolling Sandspit for visitors heading to Kawau Island, Ronnie's nose is hard at work. His mission? To stop stowaway rodents from sneaking onto these ecologically sensitive islands.
Other days are spent on-island, conducting routine checks or responding to urgent incursions.
'Ronnie's still young, but he's already proven his worth,' says Rochelle.
'His first alert on a Great Barrier Island vehicle check was rat remains on a lawnmower. This sparked a conversation with the boat's owner and helped educate them about biosecurity risks. That's a win in our book.'
Like most teens, Ronnie's still figuring some things out: he loves water but can't swim properly (yet), he's obsessed with his ball, less so with rainy weather, he's curious, sociable, and if left alone with a soft toy or bed, is known to deconstruct it with artistic flair.
'He's definitely keeping me on my toes,' laughs Rochelle.
'But he learns fast, and he loves one-on-one time. He's always ready for an early start, even if it is the worst weather.'
Earlier this year, Ronnie flew in a helicopter for the first time during an urgent deployment to Great Mercury Island / Ahuahu for a suspected mouse incursion.
'He took it all in stride,' Rochelle says. 'It was a great milestone for both of us.'
As Auckland Council and its partners continue their work to protect and restore our island ecosystems, dogs like Ronnie play a critical role. They're fast, precise, and effective, natural-born conservationists in fur coats.
Auckland Council's Pathways team manager Liz Brooks says these dogs are the ultimate weapon in the war against keeping pests off islands.
'Their noses are always on, and they have incredible detection abilities. Nothing can match their clever and sharply honed abilities to detect a pest.
'There is no other way we could check a load of gear, or even a house, going to Great Barrier, for example, without pulling it apart. Ronnie lets us speedily check and give people the green light to go, adds Ms Brooks.'
Ronnie might still be growing into his paws, but there's no doubt: this young pup is already making a big difference. And he's just getting started.
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2 days ago
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Certified And Cheeky: Meet Ronnie, Auckland Council's Newest Conservation Canine
Press Release – Auckland Council This two-year-old hire is a rowdy teenager with a full-time job, and he's fully vetted to protect Hauraki Gulf's precious pest-free islands from unwanted intruders. Recently graduated with full certification from the Conservation Dog Programme, Ronnie has officially proven he has what it takes to sniff out rats – and mice and only rats and mice – in Auckland's most sensitive native environments. After passing rigorous training with the national programme, Ronnie is trusted to work on pest-free islands alongside our native species. This canine crusader is now the real deal. Auckland Council's Biosecurity Advisor and handler Rochelle says Ronnie is like a cheeky teenager with a job he happens to be excellent at. 'He's playful, energetic, and sometimes tries to test the rules, but when it's time to work, he's laser focused. He's trained hard for this, and he's earned it.' Born on Great Barrier Island, Ronnie is the son of conservation royalty. His mum, Juno, is a smooth-coated fox terrier ratter, and his dad, Tane, a scruffy Waiheke-based border terrier, bred for stoat detection. Ronnie's sleek black coat with a splash of grey on his chin and paws makes him stand out, a bit of a mystery, but unmistakably handsome. He came into Rochelle's care at 16 months and has since lived a very social life with his mentor and canine flat mates: Rosie the seasoned 8-year-old terrier cross rat detector (whom Ronnie will eventually succeed), and Aria the retired airport beagle who, along with Rochelle's three teenage sons, keep Ronnie's feet somewhat on the ground. A typical day for Ronnie starts with tail wags and excitement as he heads to work with Rochelle. Whether it's inspecting vehicles and gear at ferry terminals destined for Waiheke, Aotea / Great Barrier or patrolling Sandspit for visitors heading to Kawau Island, Ronnie's nose is hard at work. His mission? To stop stowaway rodents from sneaking onto these ecologically sensitive islands. Other days are spent on-island, conducting routine checks or responding to urgent incursions. 'Ronnie's still young, but he's already proven his worth,' says Rochelle. 'His first alert on a Great Barrier Island vehicle check was rat remains on a lawnmower. This sparked a conversation with the boat's owner and helped educate them about biosecurity risks. That's a win in our book.' Like most teens, Ronnie's still figuring some things out: he loves water but can't swim properly (yet), he's obsessed with his ball, less so with rainy weather, he's curious, sociable, and if left alone with a soft toy or bed, is known to deconstruct it with artistic flair. 'He's definitely keeping me on my toes,' laughs Rochelle. 'But he learns fast, and he loves one-on-one time. He's always ready for an early start, even if it is the worst weather.' Earlier this year, Ronnie flew in a helicopter for the first time during an urgent deployment to Great Mercury Island / Ahuahu for a suspected mouse incursion. 'He took it all in stride,' Rochelle says. 'It was a great milestone for both of us.' As Auckland Council and its partners continue their work to protect and restore our island ecosystems, dogs like Ronnie play a critical role. They're fast, precise, and effective, natural-born conservationists in fur coats. Auckland Council's Pathways team manager Liz Brooks says these dogs are the ultimate weapon in the war against keeping pests off islands. 'Their noses are always on, and they have incredible detection abilities. Nothing can match their clever and sharply honed abilities to detect a pest. 'There is no other way we could check a load of gear, or even a house, going to Great Barrier, for example, without pulling it apart. Ronnie lets us speedily check and give people the green light to go, adds Ms Brooks.' Ronnie might still be growing into his paws, but there's no doubt: this young pup is already making a big difference. And he's just getting started.
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Book of the Week: Art sticks it to Ruth Richardson
Over four decades, commencing in the early 1960s and on a librarian's salary, Wellington-based autodidact Walter Cook amassed a world-class collection of late 19th and early 20th century ceramics and glass which he donated to the National Collection, soon to become Te Papa, in 1992. Cook's intention in gifting his collection of nearly 400 pieces to the nation was not without political intent. In a 2012 RNZ interview, he described the gift as 'the way I, an ordinary, powerless person, could give the fingers to Ruth Richardson and every value she stood for – that neo-liberal atomised self-interest. Because I don't believe in that at all, and our cultural institutions stand as evidence that there is community and there is common purpose'. His collection is documented across 400 pages of meticulously catalogued, referenced and illustrated applied arts, in Towards Modernism: The Walter Cook Collection at Te Papa by Justine Olsen. It's an elegant love letter to the joys one collector found, and chose to share, among the forms and colours found in Art Nouveau glass, Scandinavian teapots and biscuit jars by the irrepressible British designer Susie Cooper (1902–1995). Olsen, Te Papa Tongarewa's curator of Decorative Art and Design, explores the works of iconic designers in Cook's collection – Cooper and Clarice Cliff, William De Morgan, Keith Murray, Christopher Dresser and Royal Copenhagen stars Inge-Lise Koefoed and Berthe Jessen. Olsen deftly teases out wider contexts and readings for many of the decorative pieces. Among her favourites is 'a tall Tenera Vase by Danish designer Berthe Jessen in 1963 … It's a delicate yet lush design. The vase encapsulates the story of how Royal Copenhagen developed a fresh approach to design by hiring young women artists straight from art schools across Scandinavia. It has that art to industry approach'. Cook, born in 1941, was raised in a fertile theological and creative environment. His father, George, was an Anglican curate and his mother, Hinehauone Coralie Cameron, was a talented artist and printmaker. The Te Papa collection holds a number of her woodblock prints: they are reminiscent of those by leading mid-century figures such as A Lois White and Adele Younghusband. Young Walter's fascination with collections and museums was ignited as a four-year-old after a visit to the Wanganui Museum with his mother to see 'a cabinet of curiosities'. He 'returned home and started my own museum, and from then on, museums became places of pilgrimage – sites of an ultimate reality to which I could only aspire'. As a teenager he frequented Wellington's second-hand stores and bookshops, building his knowledge and developing an early love of English Art Nouveau artist Aubrey Beardsley and the philosophy of poet and designer William Morris, godfather of the English Arts and Crafts movement. Cook began collecting Art Nouveau as 'a way of touching the reality of Morris and the Pre-Raphaelites in far off New Zealand'. His first purchase in 1961 was a Tudric hot-water jug by Liberty & Co dating to around 1903 from the shop Gallery 36 on Vivian Street, Wellington. This, he said, 'initiated me into the addictive habit and thrill of hunting quarry in secondhand shops'. From this point Cook the collector worked his way through the 20th century as design trends became evermore progressive and future-facing, racing towards the modernism and the utopian optimism suggested by the book's title. From the Empire-infused fascinations with Japonisme and the classical forms of Royal Doulton and Moorcroft to the fusion of Medieval fancy and Art Nouveau of Tudric pewter and Minton 'Secessionist' ware, Cook looked to more flamboyant movements that flowered in the Art Deco years after WWI when Susie Cooper, Charlotte Rhead and Truda Carter, along with Clarice Cliff, were leading figures in the design world. New Zealand design enters the picture in the second half of Towards Modernism in the form of the creamy and minimalist forms of Crown Lynn vases by Ernest Shufflebotham, which continue to be highly sought after by 21st century collectors. Today much of this collecting has moved online, and that cagey, gregarious milieu of collectors and specialist dealers known as the trade is now defunct. Towards Modernism acts as their requiem, following the collector's quest among the shelves of tony antique dealers and bric-a-brac emporiums alike for a prize piece of Minton or an unusual example of Scandinavian design at Paddy's Market or a long-departed 'Curiosity' shop. Collector-centric shops, happy hunting grounds for Cook and his cohort, such as Odds & Ends, Mr Smiles and Willbank Court Antiques, from whom Cook acquired a fine high-fired Ruskin Pottery sang de boeuf (bull's blood) squat vase (1912) in 1985, emerge as vital arms of the transmission of information, enthusiasm, gossip and referrals. In 1972, Cook paid just $3 for the lovely Watcombe Pottery Palm pot with its distinctive shimmering green glaze from Marsden Antiques in Wellington, one of the few originals still trading, now in Featherston in the Wairarapa. Cook spotted another rare treasure in 1983 in a junk shop on Ponsonby Road. It was a Sea Urchin form double-spout jug by Christopher Dresser from the 1880s. Cook paid $18 for it; it is now valued at around $3000. In my experience as a collector, and in engaging with them as fellow travellers and clients over a decade as managing director of an auction house, these singular individuals are united by a desire to wring sense from the conveyor belt of the quotidian and divine. They are driven by the taxonomic urge: the need to comprehend and order the culture around them. The most dedicated and inspired, such as Cook, end up making good on those aspirations. Towards Modernism: The Walter Cook Collection at Te Papa by Justine Olsen (Te Papa Press, $75) is available in bookstores nationwide. The full review by Hamish Coney was published at the indispensable literary site edited by Paula Morris, New Zealand Review of Books.
