Shroom Day or Fungus Followers Day

May 17.  And it's National Mushroom Hunting Day.  I've been SO waiting for this day.  Just kidding.  While there ARE truffle hunting pigs - apparently any dog CAN become a mushroom hunter - but some breeds are better than others. Who KNEW that in some places there are truffle hunting clinics?!  To train a good truffle hunting dog it reportedly takes several months.  And a breed that excels at the task is the Italian water dog - the Lagotto Romagnolo.  They are used a lot in Italy for hunting truffles.  And apparently, dogs that work in detection work, like German Shepherds and Belgian Malinois, are also good at hunting down truffles and mushrooms.  I guess if you are good at sniffing out drugs and explosives, it's not such a big deal to look for hunks of fungus.  Resources also say that other sporting breeds can truffle hunt and even beagles - who are known for following their noses, can be trained to do it too.  The key is in not eating the truffles once you find them.  That could be a problem for me.  If it's edible, it's mine.

And while hunting for truffles and morel mushrooms is not dangerous, there ARE mushrooms which can be toxic to dogs.  This link is a good review about dogs and ingesting toxic mushrooms.   Check it out...
http://www.petmd.com/dog/conditions/digestive/c_dg_mushroom_poisoning

You know, some mushrooms and truffles in particular, sell for a lot of money. In 2014, the largest white truffle in the world sold for $61,000.  But the record PRICE paid for a single white truffle was in 2007.  Get this - it sold for $330,000.  And it wasn't even Bill Gates who bought it.  It was some casino owner.  Anyway, it seems that it could be a lucrative career for me. Viktor - the Truffle Hunter.  And as far as I can tell, Nova Scotia has truffles - but I don't think they are all that common.  At least the fungus type.  I know there are places with all kinds of chocolate varieties, but that's a whole different story.  Still, I will keep my nose to the ground - because one of those truffles could sure buy a LOT of dog treats.

Anyway, happy fungus hunting!