By Janice Morse
The Cincinnati Enquirer

The Hamilton County Sheriff's bomb-squad dogs blew away their competition earlier this week.

Sheriff Simon L. Leis Jr.'s pair of bomb-squad canines sniffed and searched their way to the top at the U.S. Police Canine Association's regional "explosive detection" contest in Middletown.

Court Services Officer Steve Fischesser and his yellow Labrador retriever, Aspen, trotted away with the first-place overall trophy, plus two other first-place trophies for building searches and vehicle searches.

Court Services Officer Dan Kissing and his Belgian Malinois, Rocco, came in right behind the Fischesser-Aspen team, winning second-place medals in all three of those same categories.

Sheriff's spokesman Steve Barnett said the awards are significant because, in the post-Sept. 11 era, bomb detection has become increasingly important.

"With heightened security in this country at all kinds of events, these dogs and their handlers are an invaluable asset," Barnett said. The dogs are trained to detect a variety of explosive materials, he said.

"Narcotics dogs, they get all excited and start clawing. But a bomb dog has to learn to be calm and just wait on his reward," Barnett said. "Obviously, they can't be aggressive on what they've located because, if it is a bomb, that could trigger it...and if they miss, it can be a catastrophe."

He noted the dogs also did well at the K-9 Olympics earlier this month in Muncie, Ind.

In that competition, Fischesser and Aspen finished first overall, second in locker searches and third in vehicle searches; Kissing and Rocco took third place in building searches and performed well in the other competitions, Barnett said, adding, "They definitely earned an upgrade in their kibbles - or a steak dinner."

E-mail jmorse@enquirer.com