Back in 2016, the FBI’s newest canine crime fighter was “Iris,” a two-year-old black Labrador Retriever who became the Bureau’s first Electronics Storage Detection dog, or ESD (not to be confused with Emotional Support Dogs). Trained to sniff out a specific chemical universally found in digital media, thumb drives, cell phones and even tiny microSD cards, Iris was one of only seven certified dogs in the world capable of tracking down the chemical compound, triphenylphosphine oxide, or TPPO. When Iris alerted, she did two things: The first was a physiological change that manifested as heavy breathing, drooling, and tail wagging, responses she couldn’t control. But her trained response was to sit.
Iris’ training was based on the program developed by Connecticut State Police which trained its first ESD dog in 2012. In 2016, five graduating dogs went to the FBI and police forces in Alaska, Massachusetts, Missouri and Virginia. As of 2018, there were at least 17 ESD dogs in the US.
Not every dog, however, can make the cut. Only one out of every 50 dogs tested qualifies to become an ESD, and as far as we can tell, most, if not all of them have been Labrador Retrievers, including the one named “Bear” who took down Jared Fogle.
In 2020, Ginger, another Labrador Retriever, became only the second ESD to work for the FBI and is station at the Los Angeles office. She was paired with her handler, FBI forensic examiner Scott Saul, a little more than two years ago, hand picked based on her ability to please and work. Meet Ginger in the video clip below:
The team trains three to five times a week, and a beloved tennis ball is the reward that Ginger gets for her work. It’s important work. Ginger has helped with about thirty search warrants in the last couple years, including investigation into the 2019 Borderline Bar and Grill shooting in Thousand Oaks that killed thirteen people, and wounded 128 more.
Good girl, Ginger.
Wouldn’t a dog trained to detect Triphenylphosphine Oxide alert on all phenolic resins? Also which trainers are actually training these dogs?
Great question, gyrfalcon, and as we are not chemists, we’re probably the last people you should ask. That said, we came across a book entitled, “The Chemistry of Phenols” and found that in a study between triphenylphosphine oxide and phenols, the degree of hydrogen transfer was found in solutions, but not in solids; TPPO has too weak a base so that crystallographic influences obscured acid—base effects. This may or may not answer your question, but to our layman’s understanding, the exquisite olfactory senses of dogs detects the difference. As for who actually trains the dogs, you will have to ask the Connecticut State Police, but you may want to check out this website: https://www.cpwda.com/trainers.htm