Vasa hosts competition showcasing skills of service dogs from across Finland

This week, Vasa hosted a three-day competition for official service dogs, showcasing their skills across six different disciplines. The dogs and their handlers performed various tasks, demonstrating the crucial roles these animals play in police, military, customs, border control, and correctional services. The final event took place in a shopping mall, an environment where a dog’s focus could easily waver.

According to competition leader Rasmus Wikström from the Western Finland Border Guard’s Vallgrund station, black Labrador retrievers are the most common breed used for specialized search operations aimed at detecting drugs and weapons. Other breeds also participated in the competition. Teams had a maximum of seven minutes to locate hidden drugs, with one team finding a suitcase challenge in under three minutes.

Wikström emphasized the dogs’ remarkable sense of smell, noting that even a single gram of narcotics could be concealed in a large warehouse, and a trained dog would be able to detect it.

The competition attracted participants from across Finland. Guard Heidi Vänskä from Turku competed for the first time with her five-year-old Labrador, Kira. Vänskä, who works in the correctional services, found the experience both intense and educational. The challenges included obedience tests, onboard searches, and searches of apartments and vehicles.

Despite the distractions, Kira performed well, maintaining a positive attitude while locating the hidden substances. Vänskä described their bond, noting that Kira was not only her working partner but also part of her family, often engaging in leisure activities together.

The overall winner this year was Tuomo Hintikka with his dog Tarmo, while the second and third places went to teams from the border guard.