Jaguar, a nine-month-old dog, could soon become Taiwan’s first indigenous breed police dog.
New Taipei City Police Criminal Investigation Corps K-9 unit head Ma Ching-chi (馬清基) said Jaguar is being trained to detect explosives such as gunpowder and C-4.
Ma on Thursday said that this is the first attempt in Taiwan to train a Taiwan dog, also known as the Formosan mountain dog, to become a police canine.
Photo courtesy of New Taipei City Police Criminal Investigation Corps K-9 unit via CNA
Police dogs are typically trained from breeds such as German shepherds and Labrador retrievers.
Ma said he had always wanted to train dogs that are indigenous to Taiwan to become police dogs.
He chose Jaguar for trial training from the puppies a colleague’s dog gave birth to, Ma said.
Jaguar performs well during training, Ma said, adding that the dog can locate explosives precisely and is not afraid of loud noises or unfamiliar situations.
Jaguar’s performance across the board has exceeded expectations and he is not falling behind German shepherds or Labrador retrievers, he said.
If all goes well with training, Jaguar would become Taiwan’s first indigenous police dog, reporting for duty at about age two, Ma said.
Palauan President Surangel Whipps Jr arrived in Taiwan last night to kick off his first visit to the country since beginning his second term earlier this year. After arriving at Taoyuan International Airport at around 6:30 pm, Whipps and his delegation were welcomed by Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍). Speaking to gathered media, the Palauan leader said he was excited and honored to be back in Taiwan on his first state visit to Taiwan since he was sworn in this January. Among those traveling with Whipps is Minister of State Gustav N. Aitaro, Public Infrastructure
President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday thanked Palau for its continued support of Taiwan's international participation, as Taipei was once again excluded from the World Health Assembly (WHA) currently taking place in Switzerland. "Palau has never stopped voicing support for Taiwan" in the UN General Assembly, the WHO and other UN-affiliated agencies, Lai said during a bilateral meeting with visiting Palau President Surangel Whipps Jr. "We have been profoundly touched by these endorsements," Lai said, praising the Pacific island nation's firm support as "courageous." Lai's remarks came as Taiwan was excluded for the ninth consecutive year from the WHA, which is being held in
RESOLUTIONS DEBATE: Taiwan’s allies said that UN and WHA resolutions cited by China and other nations ‘do not determine Taiwan’s participation in WHO activities’ A proposal to invite Taiwan to this year’s World Health Assembly (WHA) was rejected on Monday, resulting in Taipei’s absence from the annual meeting for a ninth consecutive year, although partners spoke up for Taiwan’s participation at the first day of the meeting. The first agenda item after the opening was a “two-on-two debate” on a proposal to invite Taiwan to participate at the WHA as an observer. Similar to previous years, two countries made statements in favor of the proposal, while two others expressed their opposition. Philippine Secretary of Health Teodoro Herbosa, president of the 78th WHA, accepted the WHA General Committee’s
At least three people died and more than a dozen were injured yesterday afternoon when a vehicle struck a group of pedestrians in New Taipei City’s Sansia District (三峽). The incident happened at about 4pm when a car rammed into pedestrians at an intersection near Bei Da Elementary School. Witnesses said the sedan, being driven at a high speed, ran a red light, knocking scooters out of the way and hitting students crossing the road before careening into a median near the intersection of Guocheng and Guoguang streets. The incident resulted in three deaths and 13 injuries, including the driver, a 78-year-old man