Bomb-Sniffing Dogs

April 15, 2012
Grades 3-5 It isn't all fun and games when you're a dog. Some, like the canines featured in the Dog Heroes series, are trained professionals, using their keen sense of smell to aid military personnel, police officers, and search-and-rescue teams. In Bomb-Sniffing Dogs, readers learn that there are certain breeds best suited to the task: German shepherds, Labrador retrievers, vizslas, and Belgian Malinois. German shepherds' noses have 220 million sniffing cells, as opposed to the 5 million of human noses. Of course, dogs aren't born with bomb-seeking abilities, and this book details the training process, noting the tight bond that forms between dog and human partner. Volumes in the series offer true on-the-beat tales and put names with faces: for instance, Chocolat, a Belgian shepherd, detected explosives in a store in Afghanistan. With photos that run the gamut from cute (lots of snout close-ups) to downright impressive, this series should have wide appeal, not only for dog fans but also for those interested in the military and action-adventure stories. A Just the Facts section concludes.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2012, American Library Association.)