This week, we want to introduce you to “The Turtle Dog Man,” Mr. John Rucker! John is from North Carolina and before training a famous team of turtle dogs, he was a high school English teacher. However, when visiting his family’s North Carolina home, his dogs started bringing him turtles on his land and he knew there might be a need for their talents. In 1996, he began to help biologists in the mountains of East Tennessee on a project with eastern box turtles. Using the dogs, the team went out and notched (a permanent identification method) as many turtles as they could find before efforts began for clearcutting. It was found that the vast majority of turtles would not be harmed by the equipment as long as they had the option to move into adjacent forest spaces. It was during this time that John met Dr. Matt Allender. Since then, his dogs have assisted not only in our Wildlife Epidemiology Lab, but also continue to aid in conservation efforts in Tennessee, North Carolina, and Michigan.
Mr. Rucker is on the road for about five months out of the year, camping and living out of his very customized E-350 van (see photos below). From March to July, he lives a very spartan lifestyle. While on the road, he sticks to two main meals, one being warm organic oats and raisins made with almond milk and the other being a large pot of beans with bacon. Though he is 76 years-old, nothing seems to slow him down and it can be hard to keep up with him on hikes when looking for turtles. He attributes the cardio health he has now to being an athlete when younger and was on the track and field team in college. He likes to say, “A body in motion stays in motion.”
Even when not on the road, he continues a minimalist lifestyle in an off the grid cabin in Montana, which he shares with his wife, Karen. He credits the fact that he can live out his dreams because of his very hardworking wife at home, who is a nurse. When at home, he is an avid hunter of deer and elk and prefers to use a compound bow. Though he typically hunts deer solo, he will take the dogs out when hunting for pheasants. He is the type of guy who needs very little frills in life to keep him happy. He says that just feeling the sun on his face makes him feel like the wealthiest man in the world. The whole operation is powered by love and every turtle the dogs find get us one step closer to saving the beloved species that we study. Mr. Rucker says, “My dogs are sort of the superheroes of the turtle department,” and we couldn’t agree more. Thank you, John!
