The police are considering introducing more dogs to help enhance security ahead of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and better respond to natural disasters, it was learned Monday.
Currently, only the prefectural police in Hokkaido, Tokyo and Chiba have their own security dogs. Police in Saitama, Aichi, Osaka, Hiroshima and Fukuoka said they plan to use such dogs in tackling terrorism and searching for missing people after disasters.
Some other prefectural police have contract dogs managed by private businesses. Such security dogs are categorized differently from the police dogs that help detectives pursue suspects at crime scenes.
The Hokkaido police are planning to increase the number of security dogs to three from the current two within fiscal 2017, and Tokyo's Metropolitan Police Department is planning to increase its own number and build a new kennel near Haneda airport.
Of the five prefectural police seeking to introduce such dogs, the Aichi police said they plan to do so within fiscal 2018, but others said they have yet to decide on the timing.
The Hiroshima police said they deemed it necessary to keep their own security dogs after having to request dogs from the Tokyo police during fatal mudslides in 2014 triggered by torrential rain.
Asked to name obstacles to introducing security dogs, many cited difficulties in securing the necessary funding, dog handlers and kennels.