Drug Detector Dog
What are drug detector dogs?
detector dogs have a sense of smell far stronger than that of humans and
a tendency to attack, obtain and possess prey. For these characteristics,
they can detect even a slight odor of narcotic drugs.
How does a drug detector dog learn an odor of a drug?
A customs officer called a handler trains a dog for drug detection by playing with him using a "dummy" (a tightly rolled towel with a drug odor). By repeating this training, the dog gradually associates the odor of a drug with the dummy and with the the playing. Accordingly, the drug detector dog tries to detect a drug odor of a drug because they want to play with a handler using a dummy.
What kinds of characteristics are required for a detector dog?
- Strong interest in moving objects
- Tendency to retrieve thrown things
- Strong desire to possess what they retrieve
- Familiar with people
- Energetic and aggressive
- Obedient to people
The drug detector dogs working at Kobe Customs:
Labrador Retriever
Labrador Retrievers were originally used for bird hunting. They were named after Labrador Peninsula in the eastern part of Canada where they were bred.
For their gentle characteristic, middle-size bodies and excellent ability in sense of smell, they work as police dogs, guide dogs for the blind, and assistant dogs for physically handicapped people in Japan.
