LINTHICUM, Md. — Carver is about to face his biggest test. Only a few months old, he's about to tackle a place hard enough for humans—the airport.
"I love this," said Jeanyne Gembarski of Frederick. She's Carver's handler. "Because I love to watch the dogs learn and experience the things they're going to experience as guide dogs."
Carver is training for Guiding Eyes for the Blind. At the end of his 15-month course, he will face real-world situations like passing through airport security.
More than 25 dogs from across Maryland faced that challenge Monday night. Some were on high alert while others were unfazed. Handlers call this a tough test for doggy discipline.
"The takeaway for me is the dogs can experience this," said Cindy Tait, a handler from Annapolis. "So when they come back it will be familiar to them, it won't be as scary.
The Transportation Security Administration put on this special training. Agents see guide dogs each and every day. Lead Transportation Security Officer Tom Stein says this builds better trust between agents, passengers, and dogs, too.
"When they're calm, the passengers care calm -- the whole system works better," said Stein.
Here, animals are screened just like people. Dogs had to stay behind metal detectors until they were called—the sign of a guide dog ready to take flight.
"If they don't experience things like this then it's going to be more difficult for them to be a guide dog," said Gembarski. "So having them experience things like this as a guide dog means the world."