HOW ABUSED DOG FOUND NEW HOME AT HARTSFIELD

Murray, a 3-year-old shelter rescue, went through yearlong class.

When traveling through the Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, most passengers will probably come across agriculture detector dogs sniffing luggage to keep potentially harmful food products and pests from entering the United States.

These dogs go through rigorous training before they’re able to patrol baggage lines, but one young beagle has already faced much more than his share of challenges.

Meet Murray, a three-year-old beagle who will be Hartsfield-Jackson’s newest agriculture detector dog in a few weeks. About a year ago, he was rescued by Alcovy Pet Rescue, Inc. from the Northeast Georgia Animal Shelter, which intakes about 3000 animals annually.

“He was very eager for love and very eager for attention,” said Tammie Jourdanais, the shelter’s director.

He was brought in with a badly injured tail and with half of one of his ears missing. He was also skinny, beat up and socially neglected.

“He was scared and timid and everything like that, which is probably from being stuck in a small cage or kennel and not (being allowed) to socialize or (being) paid attention to,” Jourdanais said.

This is where Murray’s challenges began, but it was also the beginning of his path to becoming a member of the Beagle Brigade.

‘Not all people are bad people’

Most of Murray’s tail had to be amputated. He came into the shelter with a band tightly wrapped around it, cutting off circulation. Jourdanais said his owners were most likely trying to dock (or cut) his tail off without paying a veterinarian to do it.

“It causes a lot of pain,” Jourdanais said. “It cuts off the circulation until the tail just rots off pretty much.”

Not only is it illegal in Georgia for anyone other than a licensed veterinarian to dock a dog’s tail, it must also be done while the puppy is three- to five-days-old.

Murray was also missing about half of his ear. It could’ve been from a dog bite, or it could’ve been an intentional cut with a blade. It’ll most likely remain a mystery.

After Murray’s wounds were tended to and he was put on antibiotics and pain medications, he began social training.

“We socialized him with other animals, and we pretty much just loved on him, so he’d know that not all people are bad people,” Jourdanais said.

Murray’s injuries were too severe for adoption, and after the shelter posted on Facebook asking for help for Murray, Alcovy Pet Rescue director Yvonne Petty along with Claudette Towe drove from Winder to the shelter in

KENT D. JOHNSON PHOTOS / AJC U.S. Customs and Border Protection Agriculture Specialist Amabelle Gella and Murray, a K9 beagle, perform a search during a demonstration at the National Detector Dog Training Center in Newnan last week. Murray was rescued in the Northeast Georgia Animal Shelter after sustaining injuries.

After his rescue, Murray was trained as an agriculture detector dog through the USDA. He’ll work at Hartsfield Jackson International Airport.