Meet Lulu: The Black Lab Who Flunked the CIA's Bomb School

The CIA recently made headlines, but it’s not for the reason you might think. No, they didn’t foil any terrorist plots. The reason they’ve got the internet talking is that they recently reassigned one of their trainees — Lulu, a silky-soft black Labrador.

In a series of tweets, the CIA explained why they had to let Lulu go. Every year, the CIA posts “pupdates” about their latest class of K9 recruits. The dogs that make up the CIA’s bomb-detection unit must enjoy their job, and Lulu showed signs that she did not. Just like humans, dogs can have bad days where they act lazy, guess where the scents are, or just disregard what’s being taught. And just like humans, they usually snap out of their funk in a day or two.

Lulu wasn’t interested in searching for explosives.
Even when motivated w food & play, she was clearly no longer enjoying herself. pic.twitter.com/puvhDk1tRX
— CIA (@CIA) October 18, 2017

Dogs can have bad days for any number of reasons, like boredom or a minor medical condition. In most cases, all they need is a mental stimulation or even a break before they bounce back, happy and ready to learn. Unfortunately for the CIA, Lulu made it apparent that her funk wasn’t a temporary thing. Even when her trainers used food and play to motivate her, they could tell she wasn’t enjoying herself. So Lulu was removed to the CIA and transferred to her handler’s living room.

We’ll miss Lulu, but it was right decision for her & we wish her all the best in her new life!https://t.co/nPZl6YWNKb pic.twitter.com/Mbcr9C7wUY
— CIA (@CIA) October 18, 2017

Lulu’s handler adopted her (it’s the CIA’s policy to let the handlers get first dibs when dogs are dropped or retired), and she now spends her time eating and playing with her new best buddy, Harry. Harry, by the way, is also a dog. “We’ll miss Lulu, but this was the right decision for her. We wish her all the best in her new life,” reads a blog post on the CIA’s website.

Lulu was adopted by her handler & now enjoys her days playing w his kids & a new friend, & sniffing out rabbits & squirrels in the backyard. pic.twitter.com/WOImM75P1D
— CIA (@CIA) October 18, 2017

The CIA recently updated the saga by announcing that they had filled Lulu’s slot with another black Lab. His name is Herron, though he goes by Harry, and he is such a good boy. “He’s a goofy, high energy fella who loves to jump and play. At just over a year old, he’s the youngest pup in the class, but has an incredible drive to learn and is super smart,” reads the CIA’s pupdate.

We’d like to introduce you to the newest member of CIA’s Fall 2017 Puppy Class…
Heron!
….(aka “Harry”)https://t.co/jDQsnJIGBa pic.twitter.com/PofFfzm64b
— CIA (@CIA) October 19, 2017

While Lulu enjoys her time as a pet dog, we look forward to more pupdates from the CIA!