Alison Moyer and her canine partner have an important role at the Miami Branch of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta.
K-9 Handler Alison Moyer and her German Shepherd partner, Diogi, help
protect our Miami Branch. Photo by René Pérez, Federal Reserve Bank of
Atlanta.
The K-9 handler and her German Shepherd, Diogi, search vehicles at points of entry at the Branch. The dog's job is to find and flag the possible presence of explosives. The handler's job is to observe the dog's warnings about vehicles with suspicious content and hold them for inspection by human law enforcement officers. The speed of a human-led canine search helps screen vehicles quickly and competently so they can roll on to their destination—unless there's a problem.
"The dogs are so vital to our mission," said Harry Zayas, the Branch's deputy chief. The mission is to protect the people, property, and assets of a Branch that provides US currency services to end users in South Florida and countries in Central America, South America, and the Caribbean Basin.
Moyer said no one who knows her would ever expect her to want a dog as a partner. As a child, Moyer preferred playing sports to playing with the family dogs. Now, she dreams of owning a rescue ranch for strays and shares interesting facts about dogs like a lifelong dog lover. The change in outlook began when she saw a K-9 handler the day she interviewed at the Miami Branch for a job as a law enforcement officer.
"I saw the dog handler outside and I knew that was something that I would love to do," Moyer said. "I started doing my own research about it, and the dogs are so fascinating and challenging. It's indescribable to say how it is to be a K-9 handler. The bond between the dog and yourself is something exciting. Something that is not just happy, but sad and stressful—the full range of emotions, just as if it were a person."
Moyer, on the force three years before she was appointed a K-9 handler in 2020, was counseled not to get too fond of her dog, a Belgian Malinois. But Moyer couldn't resist when Koda was retired on a medical disability in December 2023, and her request to adopt was granted. Koda has gained a few pounds in retirement and lives with Moyer's family and Diogi, her successor at Moyer's side.
"This dog is with you all the time—more than your family is," Moyer said. "I would have fought for her like I fight for my child. I'd been with her four years. There wasn't a question that I would take her home."
This bond with her canine partner is one of Moyer's strengths as a K-9 handler, her supervisor said. Sergeant Manny Puri joined the Miami Branch in 2022 after a career at the US Marshals Service, where he oversaw canine details.
"Her passion for the dog and passion for the work," Puri said to describe Moyer's strengths. "You have to have a passion for the dog and for what the dogs do. They are a living being you have to take care of, like a member of your family. They have to do the training, a certain number of hours a month, to keep current on qualifications."
"This dog is with you all the time—more than your family is. I would have fought for her like I fight for my child. "
Alison Moyer
Miami Branch K-9 Handler
Puri tells a story about Moyer's relationship with Diogi. During a vehicle inspection, the owner prematurely closed the hood, catching Diogi's paws. Moyer immediately jumped into action, displaying the deep bond between her and partner.
"All you could hear was Alison saying, 'You have my dog!' You could see in her face how much she loves this dog and all she would do to get that dog out," Puri said. "I was there. You could see what this dog meant to its handler."
Moyer is working to expand her already sizable skillset as a K-9 handler. She is the only handler in the Sixth District to complete a train-the-trainer course on improvised explosive devices. She's also completed advanced training in bomb detection and a bomb prevention awareness course.
Zayas used the words "driven" and "passion" to describe Moyer. She's constantly learning new ways to work with her K-9 partner and researching best practices in the K-9 industry. Asked what makes Moyer special, Zayas picked an anecdote from when she represented the Branch with a group of guests.
"I recall a time when Alison was new to her role as a K-9 handler and she was invited to give a demonstration to some ambassadors and guests of the Regional Economic Information Network team in Miami," Zayas said in an email. "Her dedication to K-9 training and awareness for the profession showed through and was felt by all. Her interaction with the guests and staff left a lasting impression and has continued to have similar effects on all other demonstrations and training since her inception in the K-9 program. We are glad to have her as a great resource and as a great team member of the LED in Miami."
To hear Moyer talk, she's still at the start of her journey.
"Dogs have 220 million receptors in the nose; it's incredible what they can find," Moyer said. "They pick apart the explosives. The analogy I heard from someone and like to use is that when your mom was cooking spaghetti sauce, you smelled spaghetti sauce. The dog smells garlic, onions, tomatoes—the dog smells each ingredient. I'm fascinated by that and want to get better as a handler."
David Pendered
Staff writer for Economy Matters