Two West Midlands Police Spaniels are swapping Solihull for Seoul as they help protect South Korea’s buildings from the threat of troublesome termites.
While their four legged colleagues may be more accustomed to helping officers sniff out weapons, drugs, cash, stolen items or explosives, Olivia and Oxo have made the 5,500 mile journey to Asia to sniff-out the destructive insects.
Even in the era of thermal imaging and microwave emitting devices, the 20-month-old duo’s sense of smell and ability to detect the presence of termites is incomparable.
West Midlands Police breed scheme manager Dave Raymond said: “After months of intensive training with the force it may seem a strange career path for the dogs. But their training to date will stand them in great stead and I’m sure they’ll be great ambassadors for us.
“As they would when asked to search for hidden drugs or evidence, both Olivia and Oxo will use a sense of smell thousands of times more sensitive than their human handler to identify the odour left by the insects hidden within a wall or piece of furniture.
“They will then communicate their findings by sitting by the area affected rather than scratching or biting which would obviously cause further damage.”
South Korea has experienced a surge in termite numbers of the past few years.
Ever rising humidity levels have created the perfect condition for the hungry insects which feed on wood causing millions of pounds worth of damage to historic buildings across the country.
Termite-detection dogs respond to the smells of the insects’ hormones. They not only find where termites are, but also where they have been. Inspectors then use special equipment to find out if termites are actually present so that extermination and repair work can begin.
West Midlands Police runs the largest, most successful police dog breed scheme in the UK with more than 80 per cent of all dogs going through the training programme becoming operational − a reputation that has forged a strong link with South Korea.
Dave added: “We’ve been working with the team at the Samsung Detector Dog Centre for the past decade to share our expertise in training dogs and as long ago as 1995 representatives from the country visited the WMP team to find out how we train puppies to become detector dogs.
“In fact when one of the very first search and rescue dogs that we sent over to South Korea died recently it was honoured with a state funeral!”
For over 21 years, Samsung has operated a Canine Centre in Youngin City, a satellite city one hour outside the capital, Seoul, to encourage people to accept and responsibly keep dogs as pets.
They train and provide dogs for blind people in Korea at the Samsung Guide Dog School and also have a training school where service dogs are provided to authorities for search and rescue as well as drug detection. The group bought Olivia and Oxo with the cash ploughed back into the force’s breed scheme.
Dave added: “Many people have asked us if we’re sad when the dogs leave. Obviously we are, but this is outweighed by the pride we feel in knowing that we have nurtured and trained an animal that is coveted across the globe.
“And to answer a question that I’ve been asked the most about the dogs ability to adapt to their new lives and obey commands from an owner speaking in another language…the majority of commands are non-verbal so soon the West Midlands accent will just be a distant memory for the duo!”
Oxo and Olivia originally shot to fame back in 2012 when the force launched a competition to name their five sisters and two brothers just days after their birth. In more recent times two of the dogs were sold to Northumbria Police while another headed to the City of London Police.
The duo flew out for their new life on 5 August from Heathrow Airport. Having settled into their new home, the dogs will undergo additional training to adapt their WMP training to termite detection.
Follow the link for more information on the West Midlands Police Dog Unit: http://www.west-midlands.police.uk/keeping-you-safe/behind-the-badge/dogs/index.aspx
