The Beagle Brigade was a team of beagles and their human handlers who, as part of the Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), inspected luggage at U.S. airports searching for agricultural products. According to the Department, the Beagle Brigade program averaged around 75,000 seizures of prohibited agricultural products a year.
Unauthorized meat, animal byproducts, fruit and vegetables can carry diseases and pests that have the potential to infect U.S. agriculture. For example, foot-and-mouth disease could be introduced into the U.S. via contaminated meat products brought into the country by a traveller. The APHIS worked in conjunction with the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and the Public Health Service at entry points to the U.S., including land borders, ports and airports. The Beagle Brigade generally worked in the baggage-claim area at international airports. The APHIS airport inspection program was begun in 1984 at Los Angeles International Airport. In 2004, there were more than 60 Beagle Brigade teams at 21 international airports. The canine members of the Beagle Brigade were either donated by private owners and breeders, or rescued from animal shelters. The dogs were evaluated for appropriateness, such as friendliness and intelligence. Those beagles that were not selected for the program are placed in adoptive homes. None are returned to animal shelters.
Originally bred for rabbit hunting, the beagle has an acute sense of smell; they can detect smells that are too faint to be sensed by scientific equipment. In addition, they have a voracious and undiscerning appetite. These traits compensate for their self-willed, somewhat stubborn temperament, which makes them difficult to train. Beagles are generally friendly and gentle with people, and, due to the their small size, are not intimidating. For these reasons, beagles were chosen as the breed to be used for these APHIS airport inspections. Beagles have the ability to categorize smells. Therefore, they can distinguish between smells emanating from "restricted" items (such as fruit, vegetables, and meat) and non-restricted items. When a member of the Beagle Brigade smells a restricted scent, it sits down next to the luggage to alert its handler, who then talks to the owner, and, if necessary, performs a search. Experienced beagles have a 90% success rate, and can recognize almost 50 distinct smells.
A beagle's career with the Beagle Brigade usually lasted between six and ten years. When they retired, they were usually adopted by their handlers (handlers and dogs are paired throughout the beagle's career). Otherwise, they were placed in adoptive homes.
The USDA National Detector Dog Training Center in Orlando, Florida, received beagles donated by private owners, breeders, and animal shelters.
