NY Welcomes 4 Arson-Investigating Fire Dogs

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — Four dogs trained in sniffing out arson are joining the ranks of public safety agencies in New York state.

Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo's office announced Friday that the canine officers and their human handlers recently completed an eight-week course on detecting accelerants used to set fires.

Three of the dogs — Halli, Pete and Taz —are Labrador Retrievers or a retriever mix. The fourth, Chili, is a German Shorthaired Pointer.

The new officers will join law enforcement and fire protection agencies in Rensselaer County, New York City, Montour Falls and Syracuse.

As part of the training, the dogs also learn to keep their cool while riding in boats or helicopters or working around bodies of water, elevators and escalators. Their human partners, meanwhile, learn about dog behavior and first aid.