Picture this – you just bought some CBD vape cartridges and are driving home when you come to a stop at a random police checkpoint complete with several drug-sniffing dogs. These ferocious drug dogs are staring intently and coming your way. Among other thoughts rushing through your head is the most pressing one: “Can drug dogs smell carts?!” Rest assured, your CBD carts are 100% federally legal, so you’ll be fine…right?
You might find yourself in a similar real-life situation one day when you and your delta 8 cartridges are at the receiving end of a drug-sniffing dog’s scrutinizing snout. What do you do then? To answer that question, we must understand what drugs dogs are, what they can smell, and if your vape cartridges can get you into trouble with a sniffer dog.
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What Is A Drug Sniffing Dog?
A drug-sniffing dog, also known as a drug detection dog, is trained to use its sense of smell to detect illegal drugs. These drug-sniffing dogs are a valuable tool for law enforcement when conducting drug raids or searching for illicit substances at entry points like airports and seaports and other places where drugs are suspected.
Police dogs are an invaluable resource for every police department. In addition to their drug-detecting capabilities, law enforcement uses drug dogs to detect items other than illicit drugs. However, not all dogs can be police dogs. A good police dog is not just a highly trained dog, but also a particular breed predisposed to sniffing.
What Kind Of Dogs Make The Best Drug Sniffing Dogs?
Not all dogs are good at sniffing drugs. The best drug-sniffing dogs are long-snout dog breeds. Dogs, in general, have a keen sense of smell. Their noses contain about 300 million olfactory receptors, compared to only 6 million in the human nose.
Long-snout dogs have a sharp sense of smell due to their noses containing more olfactory receptors than short-snout dog breeds. German Shepherds are the most common type of drug dog used by police officers to detect illicit drugs.
In addition to German Shepherds, some of the best drug detection dogs used by police officers are:
- Belgian Malinois
- English Springer Spaniels
- Bloodhounds
- German Shorthair Pointers
- Labrador Retrievers
- Czech Shepherds
- Border Collies
- Boxers
- Doberman Pinschers
- Giant Schnauzers
What Are Drug Dogs Trained To Smell?
Drug dogs are trained to find illicit drugs only. These dogs don’t bother with other substances like prescription medication or CBD. However, handlers can train a drug dog to find just about anything through intense training methods.
How Drug Dogs Are Trained
Drug-sniffing dogs trained to detect illicit substances go through a vigorous training process. Trainers start the training process by giving a sniffing dog a scentless toy to play with. The sniffing dog becomes used to playing with the toy and constantly seeks it out.
At this point, the trainer puts hard drugs inside the toy. Over time, the dog associates the smell of the hard drugs with the toy and starts to seek it out. Trainers then hide the toy in various places, and the dog uses its heightened smell to locate the toy. Once found, the trainer rewards the dog with a tasty treat, creating a positive feedback mechanism with the dog, who constantly seeks out the toy for a reward.
The trainer increases the difficulty of the training and starts to hide the toy in harder-to-find places like the inside of a container, stuffed inside a seat cushion, or buried in dirt. This process is repeated until the dog becomes accustomed to the smell of the drugs and can detect them with ease and accuracy.
Detecting Other Substances
Police dogs are highly trained dogs specifically trained to find illicit compounds. However, most drug dogs are trained to detect substances other than illicit drugs. Know the strongest delta 8 cartridges here:
Some of the other substances that drug sniffer dogs can detect include:
- Explosives
- Currency
- Electronic devices
- Blood
- Animal feces
Can Drug Dogs Smell Carts?
Yes, drug dogs can smell carts. They can detect vape cartridges and vape pens. However, drug dogs are not trained specifically to find vape cartridges themselves or anything vaping-related like vape juice and vape pens. It’s the THC inside the vape cartridge that gets their olfactory senses going and what drug dogs are trained to detect.
Even though full-spectrum CBD vape cartridges have a minimal amount of THC in them (0.3% or less), it can still be enough to detect for dogs trained to smell THC. However, since CBD products, like vape cartridges, are 100% federally legal, there is no need to be paranoid when enjoying your vape pen at home or in public.
Can Drug Dogs Smell CBD Products?
Trainers can train drug dogs to locate CBD. However, since CBD products are federally legal, law enforcement doesn’t search for CBD. Like prescription medication and other health and wellness products used by people to advance their soundness, CBD products like CBD carts are something that dogs are not trained to smell, since they are not illegal.
However, drug dogs trained to detect marijuana will find it hard to distinguish between marijuana and It’s less intoxicating and federally legal plant cousin, hemp. Since police dogs are trained to smell THC in marijuana, many of these dogs cannot be untrained as a result. Unfortunately, narcotics officers cannot teach an old dog new tricks.
CBD Products Are 100% Federally Legal
The 2018 Farm Bill made hemp federally legal. All CBD products are hemp-derived and produced in cooperation with the strict standards established by the Farm Bill.
CBD products can contain a minimal amount of THC. However, the amount is at or below the federally allowed 0.3% THC. The next time you decide to buy CBD products, like vape pens and cartridges, rest assured knowing they are 100% legal.
Delta 8 THC is also 100% federally legal. However, before purchasing any Delta 8 products, like Delta 8 cartridges, always consult your state laws regarding the sale and possession of Delta 8 THC products. Although legal, Delta 8 sits in a legal grey area in certain states, with a handful of them banning i
How To Ensure Your CBD Product Is Properly Labeled (If Asked)
Recent years have seen many companies enter the cannabis market with different types of several CBD products of varying potency and quality. The rush for profit has led to the packaging of these products being improperly labeled.
Legitimate CBD companies like Hollyweed properly label all CBD products to ensure quality and save you any hassle when probed by law enforcement. Reputable CBD companies should follow our example of properly labeling a CBD product, like our popular vape pens and cartridges.
Our packaging is labeled with the following information:
- Product is Federal Farm Bill Compliant
- Product contains less than 0.3% Delta 9 THC
- Ingredients
- Contact information: product manufacturing address, company website address, and company social media handle
- FDA Disclosure
- Health warnings
- Storage guidelines
- Child safety statement: “KEEP OUT OF REACH OF CHILDREN”
Take a picture of your package or, if possible, keep it with you to avoid any misunderstandings with police dog handlers.
Have A Copy Of A CBD Product’s Certificate Of Analysis Handy
Reputable companies like Hollyweed provide third-party lab-tested Certificate of Analysis (COA) of their CBD products. These COAs can be found on a company’s website and printed out or downloaded to your smartphone for convenience.
It’s recommended to always have a physical or digital copy of your CBD product’s COA on hand when out and about with your CBD products to avoid issues with police dog handlers and their equally scrutinizing canines.
Always remember, hemp-derived CBD products are 100% federally legal, and you will not get in trouble for using or possessing them.
Final Thoughts – Can Drug Dogs Smell Carts?
Dogs are man’s best friends. For police officers, dogs are not only their best friends but allies, highly valued for their drug-detecting abilities. In addition to training a dog to detect drugs, police dogs can detect other substances as well. One of these substances can include your vape cartridge.
Although CBD products are 100% legal, many drug dogs smell vape cartridges due to the cartridge’s vape juice containing minimal but legal amounts of THC. Drug sniffing dogs trained to detect THC in marijuana cannot distinguish between the trace amounts of THC found in hemp-derived products like the vape juice found in vape cartridges. It would be best if you always had a copy or picture of your CBD products COA or your vape cartridge’s package when enjoying your CBD products in public to avoid any confusion with authorities. Rest assured, your CBD vape cartridge is 100% federally legal, and you can enjoy it without worrying about a sniffing dog barking up a storm.
