And the best part is, he works for kibble!
February 24, 2016 2:51 PM Subscribe
Very cool but I wish they explained why this seemingly critical function has to be done on a volunteer basis. Did I just miss it?
posted by bleep at 3:07 PM on February 24, 2016
posted by bleep at 3:07 PM on February 24, 2016
Yeah, that dog is way cooler than I will ever be.
posted by darkstar at 3:15 PM on February 24, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by darkstar at 3:15 PM on February 24, 2016 [1 favorite]
What happened to his paw? Did he stick it up to wave to someone while standing under the helicopter like that bloke in ER?
posted by biffa at 3:15 PM on February 24, 2016
posted by biffa at 3:15 PM on February 24, 2016
The article says "K-9 Piper fractured a toe 24 Nov 2015 as he deployed to chase a snowy owl and will be in a cast until at least February. He’s been temporarily reassigned as the airport’s Chief Morale Officer."
posted by eyesontheroad at 3:16 PM on February 24, 2016 [11 favorites]
posted by eyesontheroad at 3:16 PM on February 24, 2016 [11 favorites]
Apparently all those Archie comics I read as a kid were true: chicks dig a dude in a cast.
posted by Atom Eyes at 3:24 PM on February 24, 2016
posted by Atom Eyes at 3:24 PM on February 24, 2016
There was also a link to a news article that says they were trying out some new snow boots that were apparently too grippy in that moment.
posted by bleep at 3:26 PM on February 24, 2016
posted by bleep at 3:26 PM on February 24, 2016
At the last company I worked for the headquarters is positioned along a historic migratory pattern. It is near enough to water, that routinely geese would land and hang out there. The headquarters employed a dog who would patrol the area outside of hours to scare off the geese so the geese wouldn't settle there and harass visitors or employees.
Allegedly when they first put the system in, the dog was trained; however, after an initial encounter with a goose people were watching out the window during their lunch, it was determined the dog needed to be retrained as he apparently enthusiastically turned lunch into a scene resembling the Trials of Life and... also his lunch.
posted by Nanukthedog at 3:27 PM on February 24, 2016 [2 favorites]
Allegedly when they first put the system in, the dog was trained; however, after an initial encounter with a goose people were watching out the window during their lunch, it was determined the dog needed to be retrained as he apparently enthusiastically turned lunch into a scene resembling the Trials of Life and... also his lunch.
posted by Nanukthedog at 3:27 PM on February 24, 2016 [2 favorites]
I have one border collie who would love doing this day and night and be the happiest dog in the world. I have another border collie who would do this eagerly for about 15 minutes and then get distracted and wander off.
posted by fremen at 3:28 PM on February 24, 2016 [2 favorites]
posted by fremen at 3:28 PM on February 24, 2016 [2 favorites]
The article says "K-9 Piper fractured a toe 24 Nov 2015 as he deployed to chase a snowy owl and will be in a cast until at least February. He’s been temporarily reassigned as the airport’s Chief Morale Officer."
And the moral is, no matter how badass you are -- and Piper, for the record, is incredibly badass -- you do not fuck with a snowy owl.
posted by The Bellman at 3:31 PM on February 24, 2016 [4 favorites]
And the moral is, no matter how badass you are -- and Piper, for the record, is incredibly badass -- you do not fuck with a snowy owl.
posted by The Bellman at 3:31 PM on February 24, 2016 [4 favorites]
Oh my gosh, it's exactly Mutt from The Dog Who Wouldn't Be.
posted by Wolfdog at 3:37 PM on February 24, 2016
posted by Wolfdog at 3:37 PM on February 24, 2016
It is always striking to me how much we trust dogs with some of our most important activities. Guiding the blind. Visiting sick children. Rescuing the lost and injured during disasters. Catching criminals. Accompanying soldiers. Pulling us across wastelands. Helping us get food. Protecting our families. Chasing other animals away from our airports.
Going for walks. Playing.
And then I get all teary eyed and useless for a little while.
I also miss my dog, in case you couldn't tell.
posted by Celsius1414 at 3:50 PM on February 24, 2016 [22 favorites]
Going for walks. Playing.
And then I get all teary eyed and useless for a little while.
I also miss my dog, in case you couldn't tell.
posted by Celsius1414 at 3:50 PM on February 24, 2016 [22 favorites]
Unrelated: Cherry Capital Airport is the nicest airport I've ever been to.
posted by kevinbelt at 4:00 PM on February 24, 2016
posted by kevinbelt at 4:00 PM on February 24, 2016
We could use an animal like this at my airport. Damn those starlings trying to nest in my hangar and shitting all over my airplane! Though my new BirdXPeller audio repeller and sticky goop I applied up in the framing seem to be working.
posted by exogenous at 4:15 PM on February 24, 2016
posted by exogenous at 4:15 PM on February 24, 2016
Very cool but I wish they explained why this seemingly critical function has to be done on a volunteer basis
I didn't see the volunteer thing mentioned on the page. Just that the airport was required to have a method to mitigate bird strikes.
The municipal airport near me uses a remote-control propane noise cannon to scare off the geese. While that's cool, a goggle-wearing collie is much cooler. Go Piper.
posted by JoeZydeco at 4:28 PM on February 24, 2016 [1 favorite]
I didn't see the volunteer thing mentioned on the page. Just that the airport was required to have a method to mitigate bird strikes.
The municipal airport near me uses a remote-control propane noise cannon to scare off the geese. While that's cool, a goggle-wearing collie is much cooler. Go Piper.
posted by JoeZydeco at 4:28 PM on February 24, 2016 [1 favorite]
I bet, in dog, he talks a lot like Captain Flashheart. WOOF!
posted by Wolfdog at 4:39 PM on February 24, 2016 [4 favorites]
posted by Wolfdog at 4:39 PM on February 24, 2016 [4 favorites]
Who's a good dog?
While necessary, the eye and ear protection just delight me to no end. Look at how totally cool Piper looks!
This dog is living the best life, dog or human.
posted by darksong at 4:42 PM on February 24, 2016 [5 favorites]
While necessary, the eye and ear protection just delight me to no end. Look at how totally cool Piper looks!
This dog is living the best life, dog or human.
posted by darksong at 4:42 PM on February 24, 2016 [5 favorites]
Under "How Can I Support The Airport K-9 Team?" it says it's a volunteer team that accepts donations.
posted by bleep at 4:46 PM on February 24, 2016
posted by bleep at 4:46 PM on February 24, 2016
And the moral is, no matter how badass you are -- and Piper, for the record, is incredibly badass -- you do not fuck with a snowy owl.
Whoever knowingly and willfully obstructs or retards the passage of the mail, or any carrier or conveyance carrying the mail, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than six months, or both.
(June 25, 1948, ch. 645, 62 Stat. 778; Pub. L. 103–322, title XXXIII, § 330016(1)(B), Sept. 13, 1994, 108 Stat. 2146.)
posted by sebastienbailard at 5:18 PM on February 24, 2016 [5 favorites]
Whoever knowingly and willfully obstructs or retards the passage of the mail, or any carrier or conveyance carrying the mail, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than six months, or both.
(June 25, 1948, ch. 645, 62 Stat. 778; Pub. L. 103–322, title XXXIII, § 330016(1)(B), Sept. 13, 1994, 108 Stat. 2146.)
posted by sebastienbailard at 5:18 PM on February 24, 2016 [5 favorites]
What a happy making dog job that is! chase the birds! good boy!
posted by OHenryPacey at 5:18 PM on February 24, 2016 [2 favorites]
posted by OHenryPacey at 5:18 PM on February 24, 2016 [2 favorites]
see also (2):
...
The cheetahs didn’t wander onto Makhado Air Force Base by accident. They were deployed there earlier this month as part of a program started in the 1990s that places cheetahs on military bases for animal-control purposes. The big cats roam the base freely, hunting small game that might run onto airplane runways from nearby nature reserves and pose risks to flight safety.
...
posted by sebastienbailard at 5:26 PM on February 24, 2016 [6 favorites]
...
The cheetahs didn’t wander onto Makhado Air Force Base by accident. They were deployed there earlier this month as part of a program started in the 1990s that places cheetahs on military bases for animal-control purposes. The big cats roam the base freely, hunting small game that might run onto airplane runways from nearby nature reserves and pose risks to flight safety.
...
posted by sebastienbailard at 5:26 PM on February 24, 2016 [6 favorites]
This comes close on the anniversary of my collie's death, and I'm maudlin and a little drunk, so I will bloviate:
A good working collie is an amazing creature. Sure, there's a monumental amount of effort in the training, but when you're there, that dog will do its job no matter what. You don't need to think about how you're inflecting or what mild novelty has cropped up because you're working with a fiercely intelligent creature that wants to do a good job and has studied your signals more closely than any person you know. Handling a mature working dog is a comfort more than labor, a loving symbiote.
If you haven't had a smart working dog, the experience is a little foreign, but not entirely. Not entirely because a) we are literally evolved to work with these creatures and b) they will take most of the burden of understanding.
That's what Piper's life is: a joyful collaboration, and we should all be so lucky.
posted by The Gaffer at 6:22 PM on February 24, 2016 [8 favorites]
A good working collie is an amazing creature. Sure, there's a monumental amount of effort in the training, but when you're there, that dog will do its job no matter what. You don't need to think about how you're inflecting or what mild novelty has cropped up because you're working with a fiercely intelligent creature that wants to do a good job and has studied your signals more closely than any person you know. Handling a mature working dog is a comfort more than labor, a loving symbiote.
If you haven't had a smart working dog, the experience is a little foreign, but not entirely. Not entirely because a) we are literally evolved to work with these creatures and b) they will take most of the burden of understanding.
That's what Piper's life is: a joyful collaboration, and we should all be so lucky.
posted by The Gaffer at 6:22 PM on February 24, 2016 [8 favorites]
The article says "K-9 Piper fractured a toe 24 Nov 2015 as he deployed to chase a snowy owl and will be in a cast until at least February. He’s been temporarily reassigned as the airport’s Chief Morale Officer."
Thanks. (I did look at a lot of the MFpictures.)
posted by biffa at 12:12 AM on February 25, 2016 [1 favorite]
Thanks. (I did look at a lot of the MFpictures.)
posted by biffa at 12:12 AM on February 25, 2016 [1 favorite]
1: Chief Morale Officer! (D'awwww!)
2: RexSpecs has missed an opportunity in not calling their eye protection "doggles".
posted by Mister Moofoo at 2:26 AM on February 25, 2016 [3 favorites]
2: RexSpecs has missed an opportunity in not calling their eye protection "doggles".
posted by Mister Moofoo at 2:26 AM on February 25, 2016 [3 favorites]
"We're sorry, old chum, but it's time for you to take off the Doggles. You've done good work, and you deserve to kick back and enjoy some quality time in retirement.... Hey, meet your replacement!"
Pixar movie waiting to happen.
posted by Devonian at 3:50 AM on February 25, 2016
Pixar movie waiting to happen.
posted by Devonian at 3:50 AM on February 25, 2016
RexSpecs has missed an opportunity in not calling their eye protection "doggles".
There is actually another product called "doggles". I know this because my parents have a pair for their little Bichon who rides in a backpack with them while they cycle around on their tandem. Like so.
posted by backseatpilot at 5:27 AM on February 25, 2016 [4 favorites]
There is actually another product called "doggles". I know this because my parents have a pair for their little Bichon who rides in a backpack with them while they cycle around on their tandem. Like so.
posted by backseatpilot at 5:27 AM on February 25, 2016 [4 favorites]
So adorable! Sure beats what they do at San Carlos airport. They send the guy out in the fire truck to shoot flares at the geese. It works, but not nearly as fun.
posted by Nelson at 9:04 AM on February 25, 2016 [2 favorites]
posted by Nelson at 9:04 AM on February 25, 2016 [2 favorites]
"I am the Airport K-9 Guy. My dog is the 'Airport Guard Dog' that made the front page last week. AMA!"
posted by Orange Dinosaur Slide at 10:55 AM on February 29, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by Orange Dinosaur Slide at 10:55 AM on February 29, 2016 [1 favorite]
Well that answered my question with what I assumed was the case, this is just something this guy wanted to do and the airport can't or won't pay for it. I guess it's more expensive than whatever they're required to do federally.
posted by bleep at 8:54 PM on February 29, 2016
posted by bleep at 8:54 PM on February 29, 2016
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