MANILA, Philippines?Wanted: Drug- and bomb-sniffing pooches.

The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) is accepting canine donations for its ?undermanned? K9 unit.

Dog recruits are not limited to foreign police dog breeds like German Shepherds, Labrador Retrievers, Springer Spaniels, Bloodhounds and Beagles.

Aspins (asong Pinoy) or local breeds are also welcome, said Adm. Wilfredo Tamayo, PCG commandant.

?As long as they meet stringent standards that are required of K9 unit recruits,? Tamayo told the Inquirer.

Of the 114 working dogs in the PCG inventory, only 72 are on ?active duty,? assigned to the agency?s 29 K9 attachments nationwide.

?They?re deployed in the country?s busy ports and premier tourist destinations. They?re part of the command?s integrated maritime security system, which also includes CCTVs, X-ray and walk-through machines, vapor tracer analyzers and sea marshals,? he said.

Dog IDs, badges

Unlike many of their foreign counterparts, the PCG?s working dogs have yet to be outfitted with bullet-proof vests, if not issued official badges and IDs.

But ?it doesn?t mean they are not important. In fact, we consider our K9 unit one of our assets,? Tamayo said.

He credited nine of their working dogs and their handlers for last week?s seizure of P150 million worth of cocaine in Eastern Samar.

?Our operatives have joined police teams in scouring the coastal towns in that province for a still unaccounted 1.5 tons of cocaine reportedly dumped off the coast sometime in December by an unidentified Chinese vessel,? he said.

K9 accomplishments

Other notable accomplishments of the PCG K9 included the recent confiscation of explosive devices at the Batangas City port and aboard a Ro-Ro vessel in Lucena City; assorted firearms, also in Batangas; and illegal drugs in Boracay, Aklan; and at the Eva Macapagal Terminal in Manila.

Tamayo said they ?need more K9s to help secure our ports and terminals, areas that are vulnerable to the illegal traffic of drugs, as well as explosives.?

According to the PCG chief, the command needs ?at least 150 explosive-detecting dogs and 50 drug-sniffing dogs.?

Tamayo said the PCG team of K9 handlers were ?multiskilled ... They are not only lifesavers and search-and-rescue specialists. They are also sea marshals, environmentalists and lighthouse keepers.?

?Being well-rounded, they are able to meet our K9 mission demands with a reasonable degree of success,? he said.

No irregularities

In a related development, the PCG said there were no irregularities involved in the command?s acquisition of working dogs in 2002.

?Of the 114 dogs in the Coast Guard inventory, only 24 were procured through the funds provided by the Philippine Ports Authority when the K9 unit was activated,? explained Lt. Cmdr. Allen Dalangin, K9 unit head.

According to Dalangin, ?the other dogs were acquired through donations from PCG officers and other personnel, people in the local shipping industry and some friends of the command who wanted their pets to be useful.?

?Add to that the offspring of the donated dogs through our K9 breeding program,? he said.

Counting dogs

Last week, the Commission on Audit (COA) demanded a full accounting of the PCG?s K9 unit, including the P6-million acquisition cost for its imported breeds.

?It is noteworthy that the PCG?s K9 unit is successful, not only in its training program, but also in its breeding program,? noted COA Director Winnie Rose Encallado.

Encallado, however, said it was ?evident that there was no proper accounting for the dogs since the adoption of the K9 units.?

?The number of dogs has increased by more than 700 percent but their recorded value remains the same in the books,? she pointed out.

The COA reminded the PCG that ?offspring of animals should be recorded at prevailing costs in the industry.?