Imagine an airport without the hassle of going through security where humans inspect baggage and people.
Imagine that the new way to enforce security in airports and other public places is now performed by a different species, speeding up the process and removing the common annoyance.
Dogs are able to accomplish this precisely, as they have been doing with police.
This same method is what is being employed in schools.
Last December, the administration announced to the student body that safety dogs would be used to sniff for harmful objects on some Northview campuses.
On March 27, 2018, a search was conducted with the assistance of a dog from Interquest Detection Canines.
No disciplinary actions followed the search.
The use of canines has raised questions regarding the locations that will be searched, the dogs themselves, and what they will be searching for.
Last month, there was only one dog on campus. However, assistant principal Brent Dickerson claims that there is a potential for there to be more in the future.
The safety dogs are trained to smell and identify both illegal and prescription drugs that cause an altered state.
Hypothetically, if a person was found with something illegal in their possession, disciplinary actions would follow.
There is also the possibility that the smell of a substance could be on a backpack or person from a different source; the dog could catch the scent of said substance, and a search of the items in question would ensue.
“It’s not illegal to smell like marijuana, it’s illegal to be under the influence of marijuana,” Dickerson said.
Therefore, if it is discovered that a person in the school has a scent of an illegal drug on them, they will face no disciplinary action, but if a student is found to be under the influence of a drug, consequences will take place.
The canine safety dogs- not “drug dogs”– will continue to sniff more classrooms, as well as all of the lockers, locker rooms, and cars.
The goal of bringing the dogs is to keep the Northview community safe.
“We need safety and we want to be making a positive learning environment where there are not [dangerous] products or substances,” Dickerson said.
According to Dickerson, Northview is now just one of the many schools in the area using dogs to enforce safety.
**If you have any unanswered questions regarding the canine safety dogs please feel free to comment your questions and we will do our best to answer them.
