Border security dogs better at sniffing out meat than drugs, data suggests

There's a better chance one of Canada's canine border guards will sniff out the illicit salami you're bringing back from the Old Country than the Bolivian marching powder you snuck in from your last holiday down south.

A little digging by Postmedia News turned up the surprising fact that the dogs used by Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) to find contraband meat products were successful 20 times as often as their buddies who specialized in nosing out drugs.

Canada forbids importation of a variety of foods out of concern they might carry pests or diseases that could damage crops, the environment or pose a risk to human health. Travellers must declare any plant or animal products at the border. Likewise for live animals, which may be barred under international rules on endangered species.

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According to documents Postmedia News obtained via access-to-information legislation, the CBSA made more than 31,000 seizures of meat, animal products and live animals in the 2011-12 fiscal year. Of those, 7,179 meat seizures totalling more than eight tonnes were due to detector dogs.

By comparison, in the same period there were 360 seizures of narcotics such as marijuana, cocaine and heroin — 1,259 kilograms — attributed to sniffer dogs out of a total 10,187 drug busts.

Dogs figured in only 3.5 per cent of all direct drug seizures in 2011-12, according to a CBSA performance report, Postmedia News said. But their colleagues in the contraband food department accounted for 23 per cent of all seized meat and animal products.

The figures emerged as the CBSA is in the midst of reducing the number of search-dog teams after officials questioned their effectiveness.

But the union representing border guards said the stats are misleading because dog teams are spread thinly compared with the total number of CBSA agents working border crossings.

“There’s obviously a lot more officers out looking for drugs than there are dogs looking for drugs,” union spokesman Dan Robinson told Postmedia News. “Yeah, the numbers probably look low, but I would suspect it has more to do with how the tool is used."

The same low hit percentage could also apply to seizures via mechanical detection gear compared with the overall total, he added.

The CBSA has 52 detector-dog teams at border crossings and airports, as well as some used at mail-sorting plants. Some 18 dogs have been retired, saving the agency more than $2 million. It's been hit by the government's budget-cut demands and must chop $143 million over the next two years, Postmedia News said.

An American expert said several factors could be behind the difference between meat and drug seizures, such as the number of dogs and how they're scheduled at particular crossings, as well as the types of illegal goods showing up at the border.

Drug smugglers probably also spend more time hiding their goods than those trying to sneak meat over the line, Lawrence Myers, who studies detector dog capabilities at Alabama's Auburn University, told Postmedia News.

The CBSA said replacing dog teams with electronic detection gear will not compromise safety and security.

“While detector dogs are effective in several environments, in some circumstances there are other available technologies or search methods," the CBSA's Esme Bailey told Postmedia News.

"The intent of the savings measure is to eliminate detector dog service teams, particularly in locations where multiple teams exist, risk is low, and where there are other options.”

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But Robinson said focusing on the dogs' percentage success rate misses a larger point.

“When we’re talking about marine operations, where the dogs have been cut, we’re not talking about small amounts [of drugs],” he said. “You don’t tend to find half a gram of marijuana aboard a freighter or in a container.”

Dogs are much quicker at searching big ships and cargo containers, he added. And while electronic scanners might be effective at finding drugs and explosives, when it comes to meat, the dog is No. 1, said Robinson.

“There is nothing other than that dog’s nose, and an officer’s brain to detect food products,” he said.