In Boston, security goes to the dogs

John Kerry speaks French. But the dogs who will guard him and the thousands of other Democrats converging on Boston speak German, or Dutch, or Czech.

Many of the canines in Boston this week were born and first trained in Europe, particularly in Germany and the Czech Republic. European dogs are considered the best-bred in the world for law enforcement work.

Massachusetts State Trooper Joe Liberty gives his 3-year-old German shepherd, Falko, a command in Czech. The dog stands slightly on his hind legs and starts barking pointedly at a stranger.

Falko sounds -- and looks -- as if he is ready to attack. But then Liberty gives Falko another command, and the dog sits down, starts panting contentedly, tongue hanging out. Trooper Liberty throws a ball, and Falko runs playfully across a field to fetch it.

Falko is one of dozens of federal, state, and local canines who will be patrolling the FleetCenter, the streets of Boston, and transportation terminals throughout Massachusetts during convention week. The German shepherds, rottweilers, Labradors, and other key law-enforcement breeds will be ready to chase down bad guys, but they will mostly be sniffing for bombs -- at Logan Airport, subway and train stations, and other sites -- and controlling crowds, particularly at protest areas.

Liberty said that the mere presence of dogs can help calm a situation, and he hopes that Falko will make it through convention week without having to bite anyone. "Dogs are great for crowd control," Liberty said. "They tend to get a lot of respect from people who might not normally respect uniformed officers."

The Massachusetts State Police, the Boston Police Department, the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority, and the U.S. Federal Protective Service, which protects federal buildings and officials, are among the agencies that will have canines in town. The Protective Service's New England region will have five dogs on hand, along with additional dogs from across the country.

FPS dog handlers even carry trading cards for their canines. Inspector Jim Imbert will be in Boston with Meghan, a 2-year-old Dutch shepherd from Holland trained in explosives detection. Meghan went through a nine-week training course at Auburn University before joining the FPS force.

Trooper Liberty's pup, Falko, was found by a dog scout who works for the Massachusetts State Police. The scout found Falko in the Czech Republic, and noted the dog's calm demeanor -- a trait that is useful in training dogs to bark or attack at will and then quickly calm down. Liberty said that Falko, who is trained in crowd control, human protection, and narcotics detection and tracking, is particularly professional in his response to commands.

"This dog has presence," Liberty said. "Some dogs are more gifted than others." Then Liberty smiled and nodded toward Falko: "I tell people I'm just his driver."