NARRATION
In an era of high tech tools to fight terrorism, no machine has been able to surpass or
even equal the sophisticated and versatile abilities of dogs to detect explosives.
SHAWN CRAWFORD, Supervisor Canine Trainer, Department of Justice
"The explosive is inside this can… they work anywhere from a gram to a couple
hundred pounds. And this particular exercise is probably about 50 grams"
NARRATION
Shawn Crawford is the Supervisor at the Canine Training Center at the Bureau of
Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives -or ATF-, the U.S. Department of Justice's
lead agency for training explosives-detecting canines.
Mr. Crawford says dogs can be trained to recognize six basic ingredients of
explosives, which gives them the ability to find 19,000 different types of explosive
compounds. The dogs, mostly Labrador retrievers chosen for their curiosity and
mobility, are trained to stop and sit down when they sniff an explosive. In exchange
they get a treat.
SHAWN CRAWFORD
"We never had a dog out working in a field, where we had to evacuate a building
because a dog made an incorrect assessment. They are very reliable."
NARRATION
Since the Canine Training Center in Front Royal, Virginia opened in 1990, 474 teams
from the United states and 19 other countries have been trained. Hannel Al Shamani is from Qatar. He and his dog Paula are a perfect working team.
SHAWN CRAWFORD
"We pre train the dog first here for 6 weeks then when the handler comes in they are
married up with the canine for a 10 week course."
NARRATION
And the marriage of trainer and dog is for life. Their lives depend on each other's trust
and training.
SHAWN CRAWFORD
"It's a dangerous job that they do but we never had a handler or a dog injured out in
deployment. We teach safe practices here, we educate the handler not to put
themselves into a harmful situation."
NARRATION
For years, scientists around the country have tried to find a better way of detecting
explosives. But there are only a few systems and they are big, heavy and expensive. In reality, nothing can compete with the efficiency and versatility of this great big nose
on four paws.