Walking through the parking lot, Glenn VadeBonCoeur, manager and handler at the Interquest Canines Chicago office, and a safety dog were on a mission. As they were walking, the golden retriever veered toward a car: he had found something. VadeBonCoeur opened the car door and sitting there was an unopened can of beer. There is a chance that the dog had been able to smell the beer but it is also very likely that he might have smelt another drug that had already been removed from the car. 

“I don’t know how they do it some days, when it’s a really small odor like that,” VadeBonCoeur said. “It’s mind boggling!”

Prospect High School has been using the golden retrievers from Interquest Canines since 2004. Prospect is the only school in District 214 that works with this company, while other schools typically use their local police dogs. These dogs are brought in as a way to protect our school, to make sure there are no dangers in the building. They have the ability to sniff out tobacco, alcohol, drugs, gunpowder, and gunpowder residue among other things.

At Interquest Canines, there are currently two dogs working with VadeBonCoeur: Oakley and Zeus. They work throughout the week, and they use the weekends to recharge. Both of these dogs also live with VadeBonCoeur, living life as typical dogs when they aren’t working. 

Zeus has been working with the company since he was six months old, and he will be turning eight in December. Oakley is five years old and has been with the company since she was four months old. 

Both of the dogs have very big personalities, Oakley, although a sweetheart, is very sassy. VadeBonCoeur mentioned how she stands her ground and doesn’t let Zeus push her around.

Zeus is very confident. VadeBonCoeur explained how Zeus thinks he is the big man on campus, and how he struts around like he owns the place. 

“Zeus is definitely a Zeus… he is aptly named,” VadeBonCoeur said.

These dogs are used in the health classes at Prospect, as the golden retrievers come to visit the class during the alcohol, tobacco, and drug unit. Health teacher Michele Burnett enjoys bringing the dogs in. She has enjoyed learning how they were trained, and she is surprised at all that the dogs can do. She also loves seeing the students’ reactions to Zeus and Oakley.

“I love when [the dogs] come in,” Burnett said. “The kids are excited… so just seeing their smil[ing] face[s] makes my day.”

In order to become a safety dog, Zeus and Oakley had to go through proper training. A trait the handlers look for in the dogs is a can-do attitude. In order to see if they have this trait, they begin with a simple game of fetch.  A typical dog gets bored after throwing the ball around for a bit, but they want to find a dog that keeps going. 

Once they get past this step they begin to hide the ball; the dog cannot rely on its sense of vision. Finally, they add scents to the toy, such as marjuana, 

so the dogs learn what smell they are looking for. Once they find the ball, VadeBonCoeur gives them a treat in order to motivate them. Although this training is relatively simple, it is very effective and helps keep Prospect and so many other schools safe.

“I truly believe that dogs – and many, many other species – are significantly more intelligent than we realize or give them credit for,” 

VadeBonCoeur said. “I think we humans are only starting to understand just how intelligent animals are!”