The sniffer dog is a constant character in the solution of police cases and in several other situations that refer to the rescue of victims.The police’s secret weapons are specially trained detection dogs.With their fine sense of smell, they are able to perceive and locate even the smallest smell particles. These dogs are trained to detect and display narcotics, consumer items such as syringes and packaging with adhesion. Furthermore, they can find attachments of drugs at unrecognizable hiding places such as wooden cladding, sockets, fittings, filters, hoses, earth deposits, etc.These dogs can detect residues of narcotics that are no longer visible to the human eye.
The sniffer dog – German shepherds , Labrador Retrievers and Golden Retrievers are particularly suitable for working as sniffer dogs . The Bloodhound or other welding dogs are often used for mantrailing . But many other dog breeds and mixed- breed dogs can also do this profession.
Each of the sniffer dogs mentioned above is specialized in a very specific area and therefore requires a very special training. The explosives detection dog is trained in such a way that it detects explosives in any form – for example also in mines – via the sense of smell. It is trained in such a way that the dog’s playing behavior is exploited: a toy – prepared with small explosive samples – is used in such a way that the dog should bring it over and over again and receive a lot of praise and reward.
The human sense of smell has 5 million cells related to smell, while dogs, from 100 to 200 million. Thus, it is more reliable and accurate for pets to find foreign objects than man. By having this ability, dogs can have several fields of expertise. Depending on the field, you will be trained in a specific way:
| Field of action | Occupation |
| Police investigation | Search for drugs, illicit weapons and explosives |
| Airports | Sniffing people and luggage |
| Bus stations | |
| Customs | |
| People Rescue | Disappeared in disasters / landslides |
| Guide dog | Helping tutors with some eye limitations. |
And are all dogs that can be sniffer dogs? What are the characteristics ? In addition to smell, the pet must have the instinct for curiosity, courage, a high level of obedience and intelligence. Physical size and age are taken into account, as training starts from puppy.
What are the most used breeds for this type of work?
| Large size | Small size |
| German Shepherd | Dachshund |
| Dutch Shepherd | Beagle |
| Belgian Shepherd | Basset Hound |
| Golden retriever | Scottish Terrier |
| Labrador Retriever | |
| Rottweiler |
Curiosity!
Most sniffer dogs are female! This is because males are more distracted, making them less obedient.
