Airport Runway Dog Goes Home

January 15, 2001 Ft. Myers, Florida, USA

Birds think twice before roosting on this dog's runway.  Jet, a four-year-old Border collie, in 1999 became the first bird-dog on the payroll at Southwest Florida International Airport in charge of herding birds out of the area to reduce the number of aircraft-bird collisions.  Now, a degenerative heart condition recently diagnosed in Jet is prompting the airport to retire the pooch, in favor of offering him a more sedentary lifestyle.

At a recent, annual examination, veterinarian Sean Murphy found that there is blood leaking through the valves in the upper and lower chambers of Jet's heart.  The cause of the condition has not been determined, but with proper medication and moderate exercise, Jet should live a normal, healthy life.

Before Jet arrived on the job, the airport had been reporting between 10-20 aircraft-bird collisions each year—the worst being in 1995 when an airplane struck two sandhill cranes (wingspan 5-6 feet) and was forced to make an emergency landing.  In the years of Jet's tenure, the average had dropped to six collisions.  Jet's natural instinct to herd, not kill, the birds was the best solution in keeping the runways bird-free while not harming the wildlife.

At a "retirement bash" Jet soaked up the praise and belly-rubs from a swarm of people who arrived to honor the airport's most famous resident.

As soon as a replacement bird-dog is found, the faithful border collie will be headed for a quiet home on a 5-acre ranch owned by Airport Operations Agent Rebecca Haggie.  Just to make Jet feel at home, Ms. Haggie plans on introducing a small flock of ducks to the premises.

Follow-up article:
Canine Air Traffic Controller Saves Lives
(June 11, 2001)

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