In India, Cocker Spaniels are taking on some jobs that Labradors are just too big for. The National Security Guard (NSG) in India need to search aircraft for explosives, but the big Labs they used were causing problems:

Lucy, A Cocker Spaniel. Photo by Paxie.

“Pilots would often complain about the controls of the aircraft being disturbed by the wagging tail and long extremities of the Labradors during search operations. …

“We have also designed a carrying device called “the dog handle” so that the [Cocker Spaniels] can be carried like an instrument inside the aircraft and raised to cabin baggage and other high reaching inaccessible areas where a Labrador could not reach.

[Via : The Hindu : Front Page : NSG dog unit to replace Labradors with Cocker Spaniels.]

In Nizamuddin East in India there were 18 stray dogs found poisoned:

Local dog lovers have filed a police complaint, alleging the animals, most of whom were vaccinated and fed regularly by the residents, were deliberately poisoned.…

Sumita Mehta, another resident, said, “I have been repeatedly asked to stop feeding the dogs. I feel the colony is safer when there are dogs to guard us. Due to their presence, no monkeys come to the area anymore to bother us.”