Runaway Sniffer Dog Shot After Grounding Flights at New Zealand Airport

Authorities at an airport in New Zealand are facing criticism after shooting and killing a runaway security sniffer dog Thursday. The dog, a 10-month-old trainee sniffer dog used by the Aviation Security Service at Auckland Airport, escaped his handlers at the airport Thursday morning and ran amok all over the runways. An airport official said authorities made the decision to have police shoot the dog, named Grizz, as a last resort after 16 flights were grounded during the frantic—and futile—attempt to lure the dog away. “We tried everything: food, toys, other dogs, but nothing would work,” Mike Richards, a spokesman for the Aviation Security Service, told the BBC. A spokesman for the airport said the decision to shoot the dog was made only after authorities had “exhausted every option available.” It was not immediately clear why a tranquilizer gun was not used to subdue the dog. The airport spokesman suggested that no tranquilizer guns were available and promised that authorities would conduct a review of the incident. Animal-welfare activists have condemned the airport’s handling of the incident, and the airport’s Facebook page has been bombarded with angry comments about the dog’s death.