亚洲自慰视频 of 亚洲自慰视频 at Lafayette law enforcement 鈥渙fficer鈥 Bella doesn鈥檛 make arrests, lead investigations, question suspects, drive a patrol car, issue traffic citations or write police reports. The 2-year-old Belgian Malinois鈥 expertise is explosives detection, a skill that begins with her specially trained nose for crime.
The K-9, who joined the UL Lafayette Police Department last year, is not a commissioned officer. Bella鈥檚 ability to identify materials used to build explosives, however, makes hers a responsibility as hefty as any in law enforcement. It鈥檚 a duty she shares with Lt. Mike LaSalle, her handler and trainer.
鈥淲e conduct searches every day, both random sweeps and suspicious package calls, including for book bags that have been left behind,鈥 he explained. Beyond campus patrols 鈥 among vehicles, in hallways or at sports events 鈥 Bella and LaSalle are at times called upon to assist other agencies or to sweep K-12 schools. The work 鈥渋s a necessary function, unfortunately, of the world we live in,鈥 he said.
The pair鈥檚 partnership doesn鈥檛 end with the close of a shift. Bella lives with LaSalle, who is responsible for her care around the clock. 鈥淚t just becomes part of your lifestyle,鈥 said LaSalle, who isn鈥檛 complaining.
鈥淪he鈥檚 a sweet girl,鈥 he added, an affectionate pooch given to face licks. Bella鈥檚 all business on the job, though. During patrols, like most dogs, she will sniff at almost anything. Unlike most dogs, when Bella noses around, it鈥檚 with an intent not easily diverted. That ham sandwich in a book bag? A curiosity. The live possum she roused among a bank of sound equipment at Festival International? Nothing to get wound up about. 鈥淪he鈥檒l show interest, but she won鈥檛 alert,鈥 LaSalle said.
That鈥檚 because Bella has been programmed, in effect, to dissect smells that her brain either dismisses or translates into an internal command she promptly obeys. When Bella detects an explosives material, she will sit, an action called a final response. It alerts LaSalle that Bella鈥檚 olfactory-driven investigatory findings merit further examination. Or, when Bella doesn鈥檛 alert, enables him to immediately 鈥渆liminate the possibility of a threat or potential risk.鈥
Bella鈥檚 education in explosives detection began as a puppy. She was imported to the U.S. by Police Dogs Centre Holland B.V., a company in the Netherlands that trains and sells police dogs. Bella came to ULPD last year via U.S. K-9, a training and importation company in Kaplan, La. She has been exposed to thousands of smells and potential scenarios; it鈥檚 training sharpened daily by LaSalle, who receives yearly certification to handle and train her. Bella鈥檚 explosives detection proficiency, he said, rests on a common dog-training technique 鈥 tapping into her innate hunting instincts. As a Labrador retriever might be trained to find ducks, she鈥檚 been taught her only meaningful quarry is explosives materials.
The basic tenets of Bella鈥檚 training are odor association and positive reinforcement, built around her constant drive to find prey. Bella鈥檚 鈥減rey鈥 is something she considers a toy, a short length of irresistibly fetchable plastic pipe. Bella associates her 鈥渢oy鈥 with the odor of materials that would emanate from an explosive device thanks to exhaustive, nuanced and repetitive training. It鈥檚 a system that, at its core, simply conditions Bella to believe she鈥檚 immersed in a never-ending 鈥渁nd lively game to find her toy,鈥 LaSalle explained. He will allow Bella to watch him 鈥渉ide鈥 a piece of pipe with a material that contains a specific odor. Once she retrieves the pipe, it creates an odor association. Bella鈥檚 reward, along with praise, is simply finding and having her toy.
鈥淪o, she鈥檚 really just always looking for it; she鈥檚 always on. It鈥檚 like a kid riding their bicycle through a neighborhood who smells chocolate chip cookies. They know if they find which house it鈥檚 coming from, they鈥檙e going to get a cookie,鈥 LaSalle said.
Photo credit: Doug Dugas / 亚洲自慰视频 of 亚洲自慰视频 at Lafayette
This article first appeared in the Spring 2023 issue of La Louisiane, The Magazine of the 亚洲自慰视频 of 亚洲自慰视频 at Lafayette.