1

Detection Dog Jobs in Washington (NOW HIRING)

Experienced K9 Handler

Mclean, VA · On-site

$17 - $20/hr

A property selected to house an Andy Frain working dog shall be such that will accommodate a kennel ... Detection program. This is an exciting opportunity to join a fast-growing company in the K9 ...

Experienced K9 Handler

Mclean, VA

$16.75 - $19.75/hr

A property selected to house an Andy Frain working dog shall be such that will accommodate a kennel ... Detection program. This is an exciting opportunity to join a fast-growing company in the K9 ...

Experienced K9 Handler

Mclean, VA · On-site

$16.75 - $19.75/hr

A property selected to house an Andy Frain working dog shall be such that will accommodate a kennel ... Detection program. This is an exciting opportunity to join a fast-growing company in the K9 ...

Military Security Officer

Riva, MD

$17 - $21.50/hr

... working dogs, harbor security, corrections, investigations, or protective services. Key ... to detect weapons, contraband, or unauthorized items; enforce traffic and parking regulations ...

Military Security Officer

Arnold, MD

$17 - $21.75/hr

... working dogs, harbor security, corrections, investigations, or protective services. Key ... to detect weapons, contraband, or unauthorized items; enforce traffic and parking regulations ...

Military Security Officer

Ilchester, MD

$17.50 - $22.25/hr

... working dogs, harbor security, corrections, investigations, or protective services. Key ... to detect weapons, contraband, or unauthorized items; enforce traffic and parking regulations ...

Military Security Officer

Ashburn, VA

$18 - $22.75/hr

... working dogs, harbor security, corrections, investigations, or protective services. Key ... to detect weapons, contraband, or unauthorized items; enforce traffic and parking regulations ...

Showing results 21-40

Detection Dog information

See Washington salary details

$8

$29

$88

How much do detection dog jobs pay per hour?

As of Aug 21, 2026, the average hourly pay for detection dog in Washington is $29.03, according to ZipRecruiter salary data. Most workers in this role earn between $14.97 and $31.23 per hour, depending on experience, location, and employer.

What is a detection dog?

A Detection Dog is a specially trained canine that uses its keen sense of smell to locate specific substances, such as drugs, explosives, or missing persons. These dogs work with law enforcement, military, customs, and search-and-rescue teams to detect illegal or dangerous items. Their training focuses on odor recognition, obedience, and task-specific behaviors to ensure accuracy. Detection dogs play a crucial role in public safety and security efforts worldwide.

What are the typical daily responsibilities of a detection dog and their handler?

A Detection Dog and their handler typically start each day with routine training exercises to maintain scent detection accuracy and reinforce obedience commands. On duty, teams may be assigned to search luggage, vehicles, buildings, or outdoor areas for substances such as drugs, explosives, or other contraband, depending on their specialization. The work often involves varied environments, from airports to warehouses or public events, requiring adaptability and teamwork. Handlers closely monitor their dog's behavior and cues, ensuring safety and accuracy throughout each assignment. Regular care, socialization, and downtime are also important parts of the daily routine for a Detection Dog.

What are the key skills and qualifications needed to thrive in the detection dog position, and why are they important?

To thrive as a Detection Dog, a keen sense of smell, strong focus, and high trainability are essential, typically demonstrated through specialized training and certification for scent detection. Most detection dogs undergo rigorous training using specific odor recognition tools and may require certification from organizations like the National Narcotic Detector Dog Association or similar bodies. A calm temperament, adaptability, and strong working relationship with their handler are crucial soft skills for this role. These qualifications ensure that detection dogs can reliably and safely perform their duties in diverse and dynamic environments.

What are popular job titles related to Detection Dog jobs in Washington?

For Detection Dog jobs in Washington, the most frequently searched job titles are:

What job categories do people searching Detection Dog jobs in Washington look for?

The top searched job categories for Detection Dog jobs in Washington are:

What cities in Washington are hiring for Detection Dog jobs?

Cities in Washington with the most Detection Dog job openings:

Infographic showing various Detection Dog job openings in Washington as of August 2026, with employment types broken down into 57% Full Time, and 43% Part Time. Highlights an 100% In-person job distribution, with an average salary of $60,392 per year, or $29 per hour.

Senior Data Dog Cloud Engineer (Observability)

System One

Washington, DC • On-site

$63/hr

Contractor

Medical, Dental, Vision, Life, Retirement

Re-posted 5 days ago


Job description

Senior Data Dog Cloud Engineer (Observability)

Work location: Hybrid- 1* week in Washington, D.C. 20002 Type: Contract-to-hire Clearance: Must be able to obtain/maintain Public Trust Compensation: $63/HR

What you’ll do (day-to-day)

You’ll be the go-to senior engineer for building and improving an enterprise observability program—using Datadog (or a comparable platform)—to help teams detect issues faster, reduce alert noise, and improve reliability in a 24x7 environment.

Key responsibilities include:

  • Build and run observability tooling across metrics, logs, traces/APM, RUM, synthetics, and network monitoring
  • Create and maintain dashboards, monitors, alerts, SLOs/SLIs that teams actually use (high signal, low noise)
  • Instrument applications and services using agents, OpenTelemetry, and language-specific APM tooling (Java, .NET, Python, Node.js, Go)
  • Improve production performance and reliability using telemetry to troubleshoot:
    • latency, saturation, capacity, errors, and dependency issues
  • Partner with cloud/platform/app teams to embed observability into:
    • AWS + Azure
    • Kubernetes/OpenShift
  • Integrate monitoring workflows with ServiceNow, CI/CD pipelines, and on-call/paging processes
  • Establish and enforce telemetry standards (tagging strategy, governance, cost control)

What we’re looking for (must-haves)

  • 8+ years in infrastructure/platform engineering (or similar), including 5+ years focused on observability/performance/SRE-type work
  • Hands-on experience operating an observability platform:
    • Datadog preferred, but Dynatrace / New Relic / Splunk Observability / Grafana+Prometheus are also relevant
  • Strong experience with APM + distributed tracing in production (including instrumentation and service mapping)
  • Production monitoring experience with Kubernetes/OpenShift
  • Cloud experience supporting monitoring/telemetry in AWS and/or Azure
  • Bachelor’s degree (or equivalent experience)
  • Ability to support an on-call rotation in a 24x7 environment

Nice-to-haves (stand out if you have them)

  • Experience in federal/government environments (FISMA, FedRAMP, NIST-aligned)
  • Datadog certifications (or comparable)
  • eBPF observability, service mesh telemetry (Istio/Linkerd)
  • Terraform/Bicep/ARM for deploying monitoring as code
  • AWS/Azure/OpenShift/Terraform certifications

System One, and its subsidiaries including Joulé and Mountain Ltd., are leaders in delivering outsourced services and workforce solutions across North America. We help clients get work done more efficiently and economically, without compromising quality. System One not only serves as a valued partner for our clients, but we offer eligible employees health and welfare benefits coverage options including medical, dental, vision, spending accounts, life insurance, voluntary plans, as well as participation in a 401(k) plan.

System One is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions), sexual orientation, gender identity, age, national origin, disability, family care or medical leave status, genetic information, veteran status, marital status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, or local law. #M-1 #LI-AJ1 Ref: #851-Rockville-S1


System One logo

About System One

Sourced by ZipRecruiter

System One helps employers get work done more efficiently and economically without compromising quality. Over our 35+ year history, we've helped connect thousands of talented people with innovative companies. The excitement of a perfect fit motivates us every single day.

Industry

Business consulting services and recruiting and staffing services

Company size

5,001 - 10,000 Employees

Headquarters location

Pittsburgh, PA, US