The US Has a Bomb-Sniffing Dog Shortage

The global supply chain logjam that has disrupted commerce and caused a cost-of-living crisis around the world was caused by the Covid-19 Pandemic. It seems that there was no escape from its impact. After years of trying to raise awareness about a shortage of dogs with the necessary genetic, physical, and emotional attributes to work as bomb-detection dogs in the United States, experts say that Pandemic-related turmoil hasComplicated the situation even more

Most of the US's detection canines come from overseas, particularly from European countries. Bomb and drug detection and search and rescue are some of the sub-specialties that dogs are trained in. Producing dogs with the mental and physical characteristics that will protect them on the job and enable a good quality of life is dependent on their breeding, genetics, environment, and training.

The best technology for locating explosives is the canine nose, so we need to have a high quality source of dogs. If there is a global crisis, we're not going to be able to get all of these dogs. Then it happened.

Cindy Otto, executive director of the Penn Vet Working Dog Center at the University of Pennsylvania, testified before the Senate homeland security committee about the risks of working with animals. She said that outsourcing our national security requirements gave up control of the type of dogs, the health of the dogs, and the early training of the dogs. Due to politics, disaster, or disease, we are at risk for supply interruption.

She sees progress towards expanding the domestic supply of detection dogs. New technologies and procedures are being developed for an expanded network of domestic detection dog breeding. The American Kennel Club's "Patriotic Puppy Program" is teaching existing US breeders about the requirements and criteria for specific detection dogs. She says that the progress has been gradual and takes a long time to bear fruit.

Otto said that the Pandemic slowed the research and slowed the programs down. It slowed progress in this country because it restricted the flow of dogs from overseas.

A report about working dogs and the need for federal agencies to better safeguard their health and wellbeing was released last month. According to the GOA, the US federal government had over 5,000 working dogs as of February. There are 24 contractor-managed programs within eight departments and two independent agencies in the GAO report.