Alpha Dogs

Any delay in their graduation costs the kennel money, but they can't risk graduating a dog or human without being fully confident in their skills to transition between taking down an enemy and finding the bomb. Later, Kenny joins Danny, Luther and his son K.C. as they travel to a training seminar commemorating a fallen officer and former VLK student.

Danny and Kenny visit the police department in Terre Haute, Ind., to test a group of dogs' reactions to live gunfire. One of the animals becomes anxious, and when his handler tries to subdue him incorrectly, he winds up with a vicious bite. The guys have to take the dog back to the kennel to determine if the dog has issues, or if the real issue was poor handling. Meanwhile, Luther has four dogs who he must teach to detect explosive odors in only a few short days before a new Tactical Explosive Detector Dog (T.E.D.D.) class. If he can't get the job done they'll have to work through the weekend, which means no turtling.

Rodney is skeptical, even after Bullwinkle shines in the indoor test, detecting the odor of body decomposition in a target box, and again outdoors finding a PVC pipe with real human remains. To really sell Rodney, they'll have to test the dog to find an intact human foot they've buried - which will also test their squeamish stomachs. Over in Logansport, Ind., Kenny and Danny have been invited to participate in the police department's drug interdiction detail, where they'll attempt to catch cars using a side road to avoid a drug checkpoint, and then bring in dogs to search for drugs. Kenny and Danny are excited to be out on the streets, and hoping their dogs can make the grade.

Once Kenny and Luther have made the pairings, they set the duos to work in a bomb-sniffing exercise that features live gunfire and explosions. One of the dogs, who, like the rest in this class, has already served time in Afghanistan or Iraq, shows signs of resistance at the first sound of explosions, and it's up to the guys from VLK to determine if she is capable of seeing combat again. Danny is dealing with a different kind of personnel problem: K.C., the boss's son, is perpetually showing up late and missing work. His young age and lack of real-life experience make it difficult for him to earn the respect he thinks he deserves; not only from overzealous trainees but also from his own dad.

The leaders of the charity visit VLK with an officer who is to receive a K-9 from the charity, but after he makes his selection, Bobby and Kenny are shocked to learn the dog needs to be comfortable working in and around water. If these two can't get the dog up to speed, it could affect the relationship with K9s4Cops and cost the kennel thousands of dollars in new business. In nearby Kokomo, Ind., Kenny and Danny work with a group of police officers to build their dog's confidence in taking out a bad guy. One handler shines bright, so Kenny and Danny invite him along on a real drug bust to give him a taste for real-world detection. Will he falter in the face of adversity, or continue to show potential?

Kenny has been training a dog named Max to find illegal cell phones, and now the dog is being put to the test, searching for active phones in a functioning jail facility. Meanwhile, KC contemplates a life-changing decision: Should he move to Florida with his girlfriend, or continue his career at Vohne Liche Kennels?

The Pentagon also orders a dog last minute and with the highest standards, the dogs are put to the test. With the K-9 Olympics coming up, Kenny is very upset when construction on his state-of-the-art kennel is behind schedule. It will take everyone pitching in to get the job done on time.

Although Kenny's excited to see one of his favorite bands, Foghat, play after the awards ceremony, he can hardly make it through the weekend without one problem after another piling up. Before the concert, a Foghat manager will get into a bite suit and feel what it's like to be a member of VLK's K-9 corps.

Kenny also wants to try out a new training tool, but VLK is worried that it's not all it's cracked up to be. Of course, no trip would be complete without a bit of fun, so the guys hit Sunset Strip before they head home.

For K-9s working at this level, there are no second chances, and VLK's reputation is on the line during a final test. While the guys wait for the results, they decide to race dune buggies, and a few of them encounter a little danger of their own.

Back at VLK, the new trainees, who are used to being in charge, face some challenges when paired with new dogs and new situations. Can they meet Vohne Liche's high standards and pass the course?

There's a lot going on this week at VLK. The local high school wants narcotics dogs to come in and sweep the lockers, and the police need Kenny's help. It must be done in 45 minutes while students are in class and there are 500 lockers to check. Then, the guys head to the Cincinnati Bengals game to sweep the parking lot for explosives. They need a special type of dog to do this job - one who can be social with fans and who won't scratch the cars.

Kenny is building an executive protection program, offering dogs to movie stars and politicians. He has brought in a new trainer to VLK, Wade, but the rest of the guys aren't sure he fits in. When Danny hands over a list of 28 dogs that the trainers think are untrainable, Kenny is seeing red; it costs more than a thousand dollars to ship a dog back to Europe. Kenny decides to test these dogs himself, and when he realizes that it's the trainers who aren't working hard enough, heads will roll.

VLK is selling an executive protection dog to Latricia Duke, an acclaimed horse trainer. The problem is, Wade, the executive protection trainer, is scared of horses. Kenny is worried that this deal will go sour if he can't get the dog to perform around other animals. There's a lot of work to be done at VLK to complete its new bar, The Dawg Pound, before the grand opening. When it opens, the customers who go through their training courses will have a place to unwind at the end of the day.

Wade is wants to save VLK some money by looking into purchasing dogs from the U.S. instead of Europe. He and Kenny head to Michigan to check out a sport club and see if there are dogs as good as the European ones. Meanwhile, Danny works on a special surprise for Kenny's birthday and gets an inside look at night training when Bobby and Luther take a class out into the dark with their new dogs. Dangers are more unpredictable at night, so the trainers have to be especially vigilant.

It's an emotional time for the VLK team as they attend the funeral of two police dogs who have fallen in the line of duty. It's a reminder of the important role that their jobs play in saving lives. Back at the kennel, Kenny goes to work showing replacements to Matt, one of the officers who lost his dog. He puts two dogs to work showing their bite and courage skills, leaving Matt to decide which will be his new partner.