TSA wants more bomb-sniffing dogs to protect air, ground travelers

with the odor of an explosive inside luggage on a commercial airliner. Airlines allow the police to use planes parked overnight at the airport.

To replicate an actual flight, Allegheny County Police load 70 to 80 full bags onto the planes. Many of the bags and their contents, including clothes and toiletries, are cheapies bought from secondhand and dollar stores, McConnell said.

Dogs that fail to meet the high testing standards are decertified and required to undergo remedial training until a TSA trainer returns to retest them in three to six months. Repeated failures can lead to retirement for dogs, who work five to seven years on average, McConnell said.

One life-threatening occupational hazard bomb dogs face, aside from bombs, is the explosive odors they inhale. They pose cancer risks to the dogs, McConnell said.

Dogs do not worry about tests or cancer. “Dogs have fun finding this stuff because they work for a toy,” McConnell said. “It’s all fun and games for them.”

Other agencies in the region maintain bomb dogs, including Pennsylvania State Police, Port Authority of Allegheny County, Pittsburgh and McKeesport police departments, and the University of Pittsburgh. Some of these dogs serve as patrol dogs, but the airport dogs focus solely on finding explosives.

Pittsburgh’s dogs are affiliated with Western Pennsylvania’s Region 13 Task Force, which coordinates emergency services and resources for a 13-county area, including the city. The city has five bomb dogs, and agencies in surrounding counties maintain nine. The collaboration comes in handy during large-scale crises or events such as the G-20 economic summit, dignitaries’ visits or major sporting events, handlers say.

As with TSA’s dogs, the number of bomb dogs local agencies maintain grew in recent years. Handlers are looking for ways to juggle larger demands with smaller budgets.

“I wouldn’t be opposed to expanding, but at this point, it’s just something we’ve talked about,” said Frank Jannetti, the Mercer County emergency services director who chairs Region 13’s law enforcement committee.

Pittsburgh police Sgt. Chris Micknowski, a canine supervisor and instructor, agreed. “These dogs cost an awful lot of money,” Micknowski said as the city’s newest bomb dog, a Belgian malinois named Kuly, and Officer Ron Absten walked down Liberty Avenue in Bloomfield. The pair are weeks away from completing initial training. Micknowski estimated the average cost of the department’s untrained dogs is $4,900 to $8,000. “But they have heart and drive to do the job,” he said. “These dogs can be an important part of the whole response to a threat.”