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Question: Do drug-sniffing dog trainers really deliberately addict the dogs to drugs?

(Posted by: DropsOfJupiter on 2010-05-13 17:24:05)

I just saw something that said that's how the dogs find them. If so, that's horrible!

Posted by: Gypsy on 2010-05-13, 17:33:35

The best drug-dog candidates are the ones who are "object obsessed "... of course the dog has to know what they are looking for.. so to train, an object (the thing the dog loves & wants) will be "tainted " with the targeted drug & the dog rewarded when he finds or chooses the tainted object I have known alot of K-9s & several K-9 trainers... In NONE of those cases did the dogs have any exposure to the drugs other than to locate... NONE of them had been given drugs & NONE of these trainers would consider it ethical or moral to train by using the drugs on the dogs

Posted by: Gregory- Bieber Fever!!! on 2010-05-13, 17:27:33

I think the dog's toys are just scented with the drugs? correct me if I'm wrong

Posted by: Jordan on 2010-05-13, 17:28:52

That is completely absurd, animal endangerment, and it would probably kill them. Of COURSE that's not true.

Posted by: Julie D. on 2010-05-13, 17:28:58

Don't be ridiculous and don't believe everything that spews out of the mouth of an idiot.

Posted by: Andy on 2010-05-13, 17:29:11

Hahaha, that'd be awesome but it's not true, otherwise the humane society would be all over it. (Not PETA cuz they are just useless terrorists) . Believe it or not you can train a smart dog to do almost anything, they pick the best dogs for the job, they get them to memorize the smell of the substance (they don't get them to sniff the drugs themselves just the special smell drugs have ) and then every time they find the hidden drugs the doggie gets a reward, it is all a game for the stupid dog and we get lots of benefits from it.

Posted by: Single Worker 1230 on 2010-05-13, 17:31:51

Nope they deliberately addict their dogs to FINDING drugs. They do this by pairing the smell of drugs with something that the dog just loves to do. For example a high drive retrieving dog will get to fetch his favorite toy every time he finds drugs. The dog is addicted to the game of fetch and not the drugs.

Posted by: Kasey C on 2010-05-13, 17:32:09

Well I would think it would be the same as finding a bomb, or bees, or plants or any of the numerous things they teach dogs to find.

Posted by: Tofu on 2010-05-13, 17:33:21

Was this from that k9 food questions? Cause that was ridiculous. Only uneducated people would fathom up such things. Do they feed bomb sniffing dogs bombs? I rest my case.

Posted by: lizzylonglegs on 2010-05-13, 17:36:35

This is not a new question and its also not what happens. The dogs learn to play a game where they identify a scent and the trainer gives them a reward. Dogs love to play games. There are dogs that find fresh fruit and vegetables in travellers' luggage. It is illegal to bring certain other materials into this country, not just drugs. (Talking of Oz)

Posted by: Kaper on 2010-05-13, 20:17:36

No, I can assure you they do not get the dogs addicted to drugs. Aside from the fact that it would be extremely unhealthy for the dogs and most likely kill them, if you ever met some of these dogs, it is almost humorous to imagine them on drugs. These dogs are often off the wall, very excited, driven dogs. The thoughts of one of them on stimulants is ridiculous when you really think about it. Food or a toy reward is used, depending on the dog. Here, we use a tug. Cloth tugs are left in a container with marijuana to get the scent on them, and the dog is introduced to them in some tug sessions, other places I have seen simply use a kong and hide the drugs inside it. After a bit, they associate the smell with the game of tug. Then they are introduced to boxes. Several are empty, one has the scent in it. The handler knows which box at first and watches for any change in body language to indicate the dog has detected the scent. The dog is praised and rewarded with the tug. The dog is also taught their signal (for example a sit). From there, it is a matter of introducing other scents. Then taking the items out of the boxes and hiding it other places. There is a little bit more to it, but that is the basic idea. Bottom line is scent = reward, whether food or toy. No need to addict them to drugs. @Lizzie - they use a Beagle at our airport to detect fruits and meat products. I believe it is 15 different types of food he detects. His reward is food.