Austin puppies on patrol at Super Bowl

AUSTIN (KXAN) - Bombing-sniffing dogs on patrol at Sunday's Super Bowl in Indianapolis were raised and trained in Austin.

As thousands pour into Indianapolis for the Super Bowl, they'll be greeted at the airport by Riverso.

Riverso is the Transportation Security Administration's bomb-sniffing dog. As a puppy, Riverso was fostered by a family located in Austin.

"We bred these dogs with a very specific intent," said TSA Program Manager Scott Thomas. "It's nice to see them do exactly what they were bred to do."

Back in Austin, Joan Hughes and Lee Klancher are saying goodbye to their foster dog Eebbers.

"It was amazing," Klancher said. "He's been part of the family."

The couple has fostered Eebbers since June, teaching him social skills, so he can go into training to be a bomb-sniffing dog.

"The bigger picture, of course, is he's going to do a lot of good for the U.S.," said Joan Hughes.

The TSA has bred 540 dogs as part of the foster program so far and has dozens of puppies read to foster.

Folks raise them for about nine months. The TSA pays for the food and vet care. The only downside is that foster families have to give them back.

"It's hard to give up the puppy, but when you realize that dog is out there saving 100 or 1,000 lives at any given time, it is a win-win for everyone," Thomas said.

And so, it's Eebber's time to go. But his best friends said he's ready to follow in Riverso's pawprints.

"I hope we'll be able to see him one day in the future in a stadium, at the airport," Hughes said.

"That's what they're born to do," Klancher said.