NYPD's 'Vapor Wake' Dogs To Sniff-Out Bombs In NYC Subways (VIDEO)

If this dog jumps on you while you're walking to the train, you're in some serious trouble.

NBC New York recently caught up with the NYPD's newest bomb-sniffing canine, Rachel, during a drill at Grand Central.

Rachel is a "vapor wake" dog, trained to pick up on the moving scent of explosives in a crowd, enabling officers to scan a large amount of people in a short time. The video shows Rachel frantically sniffing around one of New York's biggest and busiest transportation hubs before zeroing in on a woman--who is part of the drill--carrying explosive-like devices in a handbag.

Normal bomb-sniffing dogs can only find explosives that are stationary.

Vapor wake dogs originated at Auburn University's College of Veterinary Medicine, according to ForeignPolicy.com, where scientists genetically bred and specially trained the canines. Training and breeding vapor wake dogs costs $20,000 per animal.

The addition of dogs like Rachel to the NYPD is meant largely to protect the city's vulnerable and crowded subways from a terrorist attack. In 2009, authorities foiled a plot by Al Quaeda and headed by Najibullah Zazi, to blow up some of New York's busiest subways, including Grand Central.

Dogs have proved an invaluable tool in counter-terrorism efforts. Most recently, a dog accompanied Navy Seals in the mission that killed Osama bin Laden. These war dogs can parachute into action and are outfitted with protective body armor and a powerful bite. According to ABC News, the bite from a German shepherd, one of the breeds used by the military, has a force between 400 and 700 pounds.

View more videos at: http://www.nbcnewyork.com.

Comments

[ItsJustCommonSense]

11:31 PM on 06/03/2011

Had friends that adopted a rather excite-able pup from the pound. It was their kid's first dog -so they were hoping to have it for years. It ended up being one of the most destructive dogs I had ever seen or heard about. It literally pulled up their entire backyard sprinkler system in a day. Almost chewed through a support for the patio. This was despite being exercised for 2 hours a day.

They finally built a running compound for it but 2 days later the dog figured out how to open the gate-got into the garage and tore out all the wiring in 2 brand new jet skiis. That was the final straw. They tried a couple trainers-but nothing helped. They thought they were going to have to put him down because they were worried another owner may abuse the dog in frustration.

Luckily for the dog-the owner volunteered at the Sheriff's Dept, where he talked about this crazy dog. Someone who trains dogs happened to be visiting and asked for the dog to be brought in. It scored high on the traits trainers look for. So they gave the dog to the trainer and it went on to be one of the best dogs he had ever trained. The dog was literally "on" 24/7 and absolutely loved the constant training. Never destroyed another thing...other than the careers of drug smugglers.

[peggysmom]

10:30 AM on 06/03/2011

once again, NYC is far ahead of the rest of the nation

[bart4u]

05:58 AM on 06/03/2011

Dogs are so smart and do help us find the bad guys.

[sixtoes]

02:14 AM on 06/03/2011

I suggest dusting several dozen one-dollar bills with gunpowder, then spend them. Those dogs will be jumping on 3 out of 5 people in no time.

[subwaysubcultur]

09:53 AM on 06/03/2011

oh, that is so evil.
my question: do they search for other things? what about drugs? what should happen if some poor pothead decides to go through grand central. will the dogs be on him?

[Seedomang]

02:10 AM on 06/03/2011

Excellent

[Icleaks]

11:18 PM on 06/02/2011

Parachuting army dogs. I'm speechless

[bklynnupe]

10:23 PM on 06/02/2011

What a waste of money.
I'd rather take my chances by the city hiring more cleaners in the subway then looking for Al Quaeda in the subway. Give those dogs a good home and stop this nonsense already.

[Tinna Marie Kennedy]

03:35 PM on 06/03/2011

I hope you're there when Al-Qaeda decides to visit and blow up your clean little station because it will take a hell of a lot longer to clean up that mess than it will to let this dog protect it's nation.

[bklynnupe]

12:13 AM on 06/04/2011

I'm sure Palin's bus driver would agree with you Tinna.
How many years have you've been riding NYC subways? Have you been on every subway line at different times of the day, night and weekend? Would you like to see a "Vapor Wake" doggie at every subway stop in the system? Would that make you feel safe? Plenty of no-bid contractor are waiting on your answer.

[subwaysubcultur]

06:18 PM on 06/02/2011

Go Rachel!
That's the happiest looking police dog I've ever seen.
The training of these dogs are completely amazing.
Do you have a good story about a dog on a subway?
share yours/read other great subway tails/tales
www.subwaysubculture.blogspot.com

[buttonman]

09:44 PM on 06/02/2011

A Labrador Retriever can smell the equivalent of one drop of gasoline in a large swimming pool. If dogs are man's best friend, Labradors are man's best guardian angels.