[neverdem]

If I've just been at the range, and my car is full of spent brass and smoking firearms, how will the dog react?

IIRC, "drug" dogs train exclusiively for drugs, but I could be wrong.

[Blue Jays]

Hi neverdem-

Dogs can be trained to sniff for drugs, explosives, firearms, live disaster victims, dead corpses (not the respected FReeper of the same name), and even diseases like cancer. The possibilities are only limited by the dogs ability to learn.

Regardless, this particular segment and associated judicial ruling is bad for the citizens of this country.

~ Blue Jays ~

[risk]

IIRC, "drug" dogs train exclusiively for drugs, but I could be wrong.

I wouldn't count on them training just for drugs. This is partly about America's fear of terrorism. I'm all for dogs finding drug traffickers, but this has wider implications.

If you thought you could travel interstate with something smelling like Breakfree exposed to the air inside your vehicle, think again. I think this is a major setback for firearms freedom. When the second amendment is reasserted and we don't have anything to fear in traveling armed across the USA, then this would be less of an issue.

[TKDietz]

"IIRC, 'drug' dogs train exclusiively for drugs, but I could be wrong."

I think you are mostly right. It's not that dogs can't be trained to detect a wide array of substances. The problem is that they can't train one dog to do too much or they tend to not do any of it well. There are some dogs trained for both, but in most cases dogs are trained to do one or the other as that helps ensure the dogs will be accurate. Generally, drug dogs are trained to smell only four or five substances, usually marijuana, meth, cocaine, and heroin. Explosives dogs are trained to smell various types of explosives. The dogs law enforcement use to work the highways are in most cases trained only for drugs. The big asset forfeiture money for law enforcement on the highways is in the drug business so that is where they concentrate their efforts.