Midwest Living/Travel/Michigan/Traverse City
Meet Piper, Michigan's Coolest Airport Dog of All Time
Piper, the wildlife control dog for Cherry Capital Airport in Traverse City, Michigan, makes headlines just by going to work.
Writer: Kate Kruse
Some dogs are afraid of vacuums, but Piper faces fighter jets and helicopterswithout a flinch.
Photo courtesy of airportk9.org
Piperis living the doggie dream. As wildlife control at the Cherry Capital Airport, the 8-year-old border colliechases birds and animals.
Piper works closely with his owner, BrianEdwards, an airport operations supervisor, torespondto reports of wildlifefrom the airport tower. Edwards drives Piper to the scene, and Piper bolts out of the vehicle to pursuethe threat.
Photo courtesy of airportk9.org
Birds jeopardize the safety ofplanesat the airport because theycan be sucked into engines or collide with an aircraft's windscreen.Traverse City is home to turkeys and snowy owls—two of the largest birds in North America—which create risks for pilots and passengers due to their size.Geese, ducks andseagulls travel in flocks, so the sheer number of them creates a hazard.
Cherry Capital Airportprimarily controlswildlife witha pyrotechnics gun, which creates the sound of explosions to scare off birds. But Piper’s work also helpssince birds often adapt to hearing the noises.
So far, Piper has chased nearly 3,000 birds and worked over 2,700 hours. See him in action in the video below:
Piper began working at the airportin early 2015 andbecame a social media star after members of the U.S. Coast Guard posted photos of him on their Facebook page.
“You’re not used to seeing a border collie next to a C-130 or a running helicopter,” Edwards says.
Photo courtesy of airportk9.org
Cherry Capital Airport doubles as an air stationfor the U.S. Coast Guard, which provides security and leads search and rescuemissions atLake Michigan and otherportionsof the Great Lakes.Edwardssays pilots landing at the airport used tohave trouble identifying what animal Piperis: Skunk? Bear? Coyote?
“It became a joke between the control tower and me that pilots would call him a random name, like a billy goat or something,”Edwards says.
Now, pilots come in recognizing Piper.
“It’s a complete honor that people serving our country come here and want to get their picture taken with Piper. That, to me, is absolutely amazing,” Edwards says.
Photo courtesy of airportk9.org
Edwards had read about the use of border collies for airport wildlife control before he adopted Piper three years ago. After he adopted and trained Piper, he asked if Piper could do the job.
“I never thought the airport director would go for it,” Edwards says.
Piper is nearly fearless when it comes to being around loud helicopters and large aircraft.
Photo courtesy of airportk9.org
Piperworks the same schedule as Edwards—four 10-hour shifts a week,starting at 4 a.m.—and heis always dressed for the job. Piper'sequipment includes UV eye protection, ear muffs, a vest used to lift him into Edward’s truck and a harness equipped with lights to help others identify Piper.
In addition to chasing birds—never catching them—Piper searchesfor rodents andsmall animals, which attract predators, and identifies new holescreated by wildlife under the perimeter fence.Though heloves the job, Piperworks as avolunteer.
Piper and his owner, Brian Edwards. Photo courtesy of airportk9.org
"Technically I lose money on this," Edwards says.“But it is completely and utterly fulfilling for me to watch this guy go out there and do the job.He’s out there thinking for himself, problem-solving and doing exactly what he’s been trained to do.”
Photo courtesy of airportk9.org
Learn more about Piper on his website,airportk9.org,orFacebook page.