Dogs called in to solve bacteria mystery in Kirkland

There’s something in the water and two dogs are going to find out what.

The State of Washington says two creeks that run into Lake Washington, Kirkland’s Juanita Creek and Seattle’s Thornton Creek, are contaminated with bacteria.

A border collie, Molly, and an Australian cattle dog, Crush, will put their noses to work at Juanita Beach Park where they’re conducting a “sniff test” on water samples collected from Juanita Creek.

The dogs, who work for Environmental Canine Services, either sit down or bark if they’ve detected human fecal matter in water samples.

The City of Kirkland says sources of human fecal contamination in Juanita Creek could be due to leaking septic tanks or improper connection of sanitary sewer systems to the creek. Other sources of contamination could be from animals, such as raccoons, geese or beavers.

“Canine source tracking is simple and effective way for Kirkland to clean up Juanita Creek,” said Kirkland Mayor Amy Walen. “Dogs have amazingly sensitive noses and with their help, we can find and remove sources of bacterial contamination and avoid closures of the Juanita Beach swimming area.”

The dogs’ results will be cross-referenced with the King County Environmental Laboratory. The dogs will go out and walk along the creeks Tuesday to narrow the sources of the contamination.