It might be hard to believe given long airport lines and overall bad vibes, but the Transportation Security Administration is unleashing joy this holiday season.
The agency has revealed its “paws-itively cute” 2024 Canine Calendar, an annual tradition honoring the 1,000-plus hard-working pups that protect airport travelers across the nation.
This year’s calendar spotlights 15 doggos selected from entries submitted by TSA canine teams across the country — including one of New York’s own.
Among the featured dogs is Gina-Gina, who works long, ruff days at LaGuardia Airport (LGA) even as she “considers herself a queen of the outdoors and loves to chase birds.”
The 6-year-old Belgian Malinois is the January 2024 pup — she “enjoys sunbathing in any weather, but has a special love for playing in the snow.”
She started her career at John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK).
Gracing the cover of the calendar is the 2023 Cutest Canine Contest winner — Dina is a 3-year-old German Shorthaired Pointer explosives detection and passenger screening dog at Harry Reid International Airport (LAS) in Las Vegas.
Dina has had quite the year. She was one of the TSA canines that worked Super Bowl LVII in Phoenix in February, protecting football fans and Rihanna, the TSA said.
The other fetching pups are:
The TSA directs its canines to detect the scent of explosives or explosive materials as part of its multilayered security operations, training about 300 dogs every year.
Canine recruits go through the ulti-mutt instruction process, spending 16 weeks at the TSA Canine Training Center at Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland in Texas.
There, the dogs “meet their handlers, socialize to adapt to busy transportation environments, and learn their craft of detecting a variety of explosive odors before reporting to their duty stations.”