I am a juvenile detective assigned as a school resource officer at a high school near new orleans. I would like to begin a pilot program to train a narcotics & firearms detection canine to use at our schools. I have the opportunity to receive a donated AKC 20 month old male weimaraner (w/ some obedience training). Is this a suitable dog for narcotics/ firearms detection? When I visted him (along w/ his mother & brother), he was socialable & calm. He also retrieved a stick a few times when I threw it, but only came back with it one or two times. The other times he chew on it. Realizing the cost for a trained K-9 is high, is this the best way to go with a donated dog? I also will have assistance in training from our experienced narcotics handler. Instead of the weimaraner, I also may have the opportunity to receive either a donated 1 yr old or 4 yr old male AKC golden retriever.

An experienced K9 handler or trainer needs to evaluate the dog's drives for it's potential as a detection dog. Any other course is a waste of time and manpower.

Also, post moved to the correct forum.


Will Rambeau
Moderator

Your selection of a dog will determine in a large part how successful you will be with the dog.
Find someone who is well known for high performance in their own dog and the ability to do the same with new handlers. Recruit this person for their skills to help you.
You will invest a great amount into the dog and program if you start from scratch.
My suggestion is to attend a school or schools both in preperation for obtaining a dog and once you have the dog attend them to see hwere the holes are in your training.
Plan on 4-6 hours of maintenence trainng once your dog is up and running well. More if he's not.
Don't skimp on the dog. If it takes a year to find a donated dog because $$ is the issue it will be a year well spent. A year with an inadequate dog means you will learn bad habbits,, you will train poorly trying to make up for difficiences and your credibility will be in question and it can hurt your career.
Sound negative??? Yep, but one that comes from years of observation, practice and practical application. But, if you commit to it, have a good dog and an even better instructor you will be fine and also find it very very rewarding to work with a dog.

A large number of the single purpose detector dogs we have 20 of 42 are rescues or donations from someone that bought a cute puppy that turned into a full sized dog. Labs, goldens, 2 Chessies and 1 Wiemer. Selection of all these dogs however was strictly behavior specific, rather than breed. The suggestions you recieved are excellant. Have someone experienced in selecting potential detector dogs assist you. There is more too it than retrieving a stick a few times.

DFrost

Wayne, I know they do things a little different in Louisiana but...Is it a good idea to have a dog that detects both drugs and guns? You'll have to look at the legal ramifications of conducting searches on a dogs' alert. Depending on how the trainer trains the dog for firearms, conducting a search might get you in legal hot water. For drug detection, you should be OK. Just something to consider.

Howard

If the searches are taking place on school grounds, there shouldn't be either drugs or guns. . .so it shouldn't matter what the dog alerts on.

Robert, I agree. But if the trainer is silly enough to use a gunsmiths rag as a training aid, then there is a problem. Just as in bomb work, there are many odors used in the manufacturing process of goods that carry some of the same chemical components as explosives. If this is the case, and the dog hits on a legal/acceptable item to have on school grounds, then there is a legal issue on the search.

Just thinking outside the box <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/cool.gif" alt="" />

Howard

HK is right, and your probable cause will go out the window if he alerts on anything permissible. Lots of cases are lost on less. We've discussed this in other forums in the context of why you shouldn't cross-train your narc dog for guns/bomb work. If your narc dog hits on nitro solvent, etc., then you will not pass muster in front of a judge when explaining why there was probable cause to believe that there were narcotics in the trunk, given that the dog alerts on stuff that's legal for transport in that space (i.e. my .45). Bear in mind that, if called out in a motions hearing, the dog's training logs and background will be a totally open book, and fertile ground for cross-examination.

Concur with VC if the dog is ONLY used in a space where the distinction doesn't matter.

The nature of schools being as they are, probable cause would be the least of my worries. In most school systems the expectation of privacy is considerably less. Persons entering the school, depending on school policy, are subject to search and seizure. The problem I would be concerned about would be a device made from smokeless powder. Could certainly ruin the day thinking you are finding some pot or a gun. I have never felt it was prudent to train a dog to find drugs and anything explosive.

DFrost