The end of last month was the retirement of the TSA’s cutest dog, who was given a toy shower and a cake that was highly “explosive”.
The Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport employed 11-year-old Labrador retriever and Vizsla mix Eebbers for ten years as an explosives-sniffing dog. When not working at Super Bowls, NCAA finals, and the Special Olympics, Paul worked at the airport.
Named after U.S. Army Private James Ebbers, a 19-year-old who passed away in Djibouti, Africa, in October 2002, The dog was the final TSA employee still in existence and was born as a result of the TSA’s puppy program. The TSA declared Eebbers the winner of the administration’s 2022 Cutest Canine Contest just before his last day. Eebbers will be on the cover of the TSA’s 2023 Canine Calendar as a result of his widespread popularity.
With such recognition and ten years of service, he unquestionably merited a grand send-off from WCCO in Minneapolis: According to NPR, both Eebbers and his handler/partner Jean Carney retired. He also got a dog cake in the shape of a bomb that said: “You’re the bomb, Dude!” on it.
More than 1,000 dog teams are employed by the TSA. With their exceptionally strong noses, dogs like Eebbers are trained to sniff out bombs or other illegal items and then inform their operators. All this while in a crowded, noisy airport where, unexpectedly, not everyone is acting appropriately.
Eebbers’ coworkers removed his “do not pet” vest as part of the celebration marking his farewell, giving him the chance to receive some loving scratches and pets from onlookers. He now spends his days lounging by the pool and generally acting like a dog since he’s retired. A dog with countless brand-new toys.