Kottarakkara: A special birthday celebration was held at the Kerala Police Rural District headquarters for one of its most accomplished K-9 members on Tuesday. Blacky, a Labrador trained to detect explosives and known for his unusual ability to solve mathematical problems, turned 10.

Dressed in a red and blue “Police Dog” cape, Blacky was welcomed with a red rose garland by Rural District Police Chief SP Shaji Sugunan. The police chief also offered the canine officer a salute and a birthday cake.

But Blacky, also known as Arjun, is no ordinary birthday boy.

A key member of the Kerala Police's K-9 squad, the Labrador has helped detect explosives and ammunition, been part of security screening teams during visits involving the Prime Minister and President, and has earned several Good Service Entries in his service record.

And then there is his other unusual talent: Blacky can recognise numbers and answer addition and subtraction questions by barking the correct number of times.

From explosive detection to numerical cognition

Blacky joined the Rural Police K-9 squad when it was formed on September 1, 2016. He was just two-and-a-half months old at the time.

He later underwent training at the Indo-Tibetan Border Police's National Dog Training Centre and completed seven months of explosive detection training alongside an SPG batch.

His skills have proved useful to the force on several occasions. Blacky detected gelatin sticks at Pathanapuram paddy fields, ammunition at Kulathupuzha and a country-made bomb at Eroor, with the achievements recorded as Good Service Entries in his service book.

How Blacky answers maths questions

Blacky's talents extend beyond his powerful sense of smell.

The Labrador has developed an ability known as numerical cognition, allowing him to recognise numbers and respond to mathematical questions. According to the police, no other dog in the force matches his ability in this skill.

Ask him an addition or subtraction question, and Blacky responds by barking. The number of barks gives the correct answer.

The K-9 officer demonstrated his calculation skills ahead of his birthday celebration.

SCPOs Premkumar and Sudheesh are Blacky's handlers.

Additional SP Santhosh Kumar, DYSPs VS Prasanth and Sheriff, and former Chief Veterinary Officer Dr D Shine Kumar were among those who attended the celebration.