Honolulu airport’s Kajla named top dog in TSA’s cute canine contest
COURTESY TSA
The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) announced that Kajla, an explosive detection canine who works at Daniel K. Inouye International Airport (HNL) in Honolulu has been voted the winner of the 2020 TSA’s Cutest Canine Contest.
COURTESY TSA
Kajla, an explosive-detection canine who works at Daniel K. Inouye International Airport, has been voted the winner of the 2020 TSA’s Cutest Canine Contest.
COURTESY TSA
Kajla hugs her handler.
Kajla, a 5-year-old Vizsla who works at Daniel K. Inouye International Airport, has been voted national winner of the 2020 TSA’s Cutest Canine Contest, the Transportation Security Administration announced this week.
Kajla, who works as an explosive detection canine, was one of four TSA canine candidates vying for the agency’s cutest dog, but also ranked top dog in her job category. They were nominated by TSA handlers from airports around the country.
The announcement was made Wednesday, which was National Dog Day.
The Cutest Canine winner got the most votes from the public in a three-day nationwide contest that was held on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook last week.
She and her handler, Penny, have worked together for almost four years screening travelers and their belongings for explosives in and around the security checkpoint.
Kajla is quite social and “enjoys greeting travelers with hearty tail wags, shiny eyes and broad smiles,” TSA said in its news release. “Not only is she cute, but Kajla ranked first in the nation among TSA passenger screening canines for highest daily average time worked, time spent training and screening in the security checkpoint.”
She also works with other federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, including HPD; the FBI; U.S. Marshals Service; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the state Department of Public Safety.
