Here I Come to Save the Day!
We here at the HSZ find that Homeland Defenders can come in all shapes and sizes. In the animal, kingdom creatures are born with unique attributes that help ensure the species survival. If harnessed, the unique talents can be used to forge beneficial relationships in the Homeland Security world. This post is going to highlight two distinct animals. Let us know if you think the first one should be afraid of being replaced anytime soon by the second.
First up — the canine (K9). We all love to see a friendly canine like this guy sniffing away keeping explosives out of airports. We love them so much there is even a website to adopt K9’s who fail the employment testing. To get on a waiting list (yes waiting list) and read more about the adoption program click here. Representative number 1:
Meet Freeman; he is TSA’s top dog of 2017, recognized as the “Best in the Nation.” Freeman and his handler Jessica Gonzalez were recent recipients of the TSA K9 Handler of the Year award. If you would like more info on the K9 team of Gonzalez and Freeman, and to see Freeman’s victory dance video click here.
Next up — the mouse
Is the United States ready to have this guy working our detection lines at airports and transit terminals?
One company called X-Test is making strides training mice to detect explosives at airports since 2011. The company’s Vice President Yuval Amsterdam says that mice are at the heart of the most sophisticated explosive detection system ever conceived. Here he is in a 2015 interview with CNN.
HSZ also found out that there is another rodent in the same line of work, the Rat. African Pouch Rats have been used to detect land mines by one company since 1997, and are still in use today. To meet the heroic bomb-sniffing rats of Africa sniff here.
Let’s be honest. What do we really think about rats and mice? We love them as much dogs of course. Throughout entertainment history, mice are depicted in cinema, cartoons, and television as sweet loveable cunning masters of their domain. The list of mice characters that have been turned into cult icons is lengthy, to say the least, with Mickey, Minnie, Jerry, Mighty, and Speedy paving the way. It is pretty safe to say that Americans love mice. As a matter of fact, love is exactly what we feel when we discover mouse droppings in our house. Why else would Pest Control Technology report that the US spends an estimated 7.5 Billion Dollars annually on pest control?
So you tell us what you think here in the comments section of medium. Does Freeman have to worry about Mickey cutting in on his action anytime soon?
