Barni, a German shorthaired pointer, wins TSA’s ‘cutest canine’ of 2024

A 5-year-old explosives detection dog who works at San Francisco International Airport has won the Transportation Security Administration’s “cutest canine” distinction.

Barni, a German shorthaired pointer, beat out three other finalists in social media voting to take the honor in the contest, which the TSA runs annually as a way to reward — and draw positive attention to — the dogs that help keep the skies safe.

“Barni is a very special canine with a strong work ethic,” TSA said. “He bursts with energy when working to detect any trace of explosives. He loves to be with his canine co-workers at the San Francisco International Airport, where he is all business. When he’s at home with his handler, Michelle, he’s free to be a goofball. He loves to play fetch but mainly is obsessed with keeping fit by chasing squirrels.”

For winning the contest, Barni gets to be on the front of TSA’s 2025 canine calendar. Monday’s announcement was timed to National Dog Day.

Last year’s winner was Dina, another German shorthaired pointer, who worked at Harry Reid International Airport.

TSA said it has more than 1,000 canine teams. They train at a facility in San Antonio, Texas, to screen cargo and passengers.

Barni’s handler is Michelle Cogel, who has been a canine handler for three years.

The agency said it started with 87 canine contenders, and employees narrowed them down to the four finalists. Users of Instagram, Facebook and X then voted for Barni.

Other finalists were Carlo, a 3-year-old Vizsla who works at Kansas City International Airport; Badger, a 5-year-old Belgian Malinois who works at Chicago O’Hare International Airport; and Birdie, a 3-year-old Yellow Lab/Vizsla at Milwaukee Mitchell International Airport.

The dogs may be cute, but a 2020 study by the Homeland Security Department’s inspector general questioned whether they’re worth all the effort.

Auditors said the TSA at that time didn’t even know how many dog teams it had, nor did it deploy them based on risk.

Some TSA employees reported that use of the dogs seems more about speeding passengers through lines than about searching for explosives.

The devastating report said the dogs’ training was so outdated that the canines might miss the latest types of explosives.

TSA agreed with some of the criticism but vehemently disagreed with the inspector general’s sense that the program wasn’t worth the nearly $80 million annual cost.