K-9 Chuck has some big paws to fill ever since veteran arson investigator Leah, another K-9, retired last year.
But the young black Labrador retriever is already up to the task, detecting accelerants with the best of them, according to his handler Matt Kerin, a fire and arson investigator for the Nassau County Fire Marshal’s office.
“Once they’re working, they are so focused. But when they’re not working, they’re just like any other dog,” said Kerin. Both dogs live with the Kerin family, and are always training to keep their sniffing skills keen.
Chuck, who started working in September got his start in the Puppies Behind Bars program.
“As part of the rehabilitation during a person’s incarceration, they would become a dog trainer,” Kerin said.
Now four years old, Chuck trained as a puppy at Clinton Correctional Facility before the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives took him in to start formal training as an accelerant detection K-9.
After completing his training, Chuck was assigned to the Suffolk County Fire Marshal’s office. He spent two years in the field before being paired with Kerin. They underwent ATF’s official training and certification in Virginia and have been working together ever since.
“Once he came here, he just became one of the family,” Kerin said. “He and Leah are best buds, you’d think that they were born together.”
Leah, a yellow Labrador retriever, held the position as Kerin’s partner for nine years, and together they investigated over 600 fires.
Kerin first met Leah in 2016, while she was completing a 12-week training program for the ATF.
Originally from Ohio, Leah was selected from guide dog training because she pulled her leash too hard. The trait landed her in consideration for both the ATF’s SEEK program, which trains dogs to find explosives and firearms, and its fire accelerant detection program.
“Lucky for me, the fire side won,” Kerin said. “Upon graduation in Dec. 2016, we hit the ground running and came back to Nassau County.”
Leah, now 10 years old, is one of four dogs in the Kerin house.
“We’re the crazy dog people,” Kerin said. He added that if anyone wanted to take Leah, they’d have to fight off his three daughters.
“Labrador retriever is probably one of the friendliest, if not the friendliest, dogs out there,” Kerin said. “We do classes and demonstrations anywhere from the college level, right down to nursery schools.”
Leah and Kerin were one of 70 teams around the country, meaning they can be called by the ATF to investigate cases anywhere in the U.S. as needed.
K-9 units in Leah’s and Chuck’s position are trained to detect 300 different accelerants, in six different categories: gasoline, diesel fuel, jet fuel, torch fuel, lighter fluid, and flammable liquid. Their training is food-reward-based and ongoing, Kerin said, meaning that every day the dogs are reinforced to detect a wide array of accelerants.
As part of the ATF’s recertification process, K-9 teams are invited to a yearly course with other teams across the country. Through formal and informal testing, K-9s are recertified, and the highest performer is given the “Top Dog” award. Leah and Kerin received the honor in 2018.
Leah is healthy and adjusting well to retirement, but Kerin said he will sometimes bring her around the office.
“She’s used to always going 100 miles an hour,” Kerin said. “I don’t want her just lying around at home. She’s not going to understand that.”
