Life without Satchmo: Search and Rescue dogs

Showing posts with label Search and Rescue dogs. Show all posts

Friday, March 10, 2023

Search and Rescue Dogs at work

Since I live in Oklahoma, I am no stranger to disasters. We frequently have tornadoes that leave people and animals in dire straits. I was trolling the internet yesterday and came across an article about an Oklahoma Search and Rescue dog that was, himself, a victim of a tornado. He went on to become an impressive search and rescue dog. Here is the article if you choose to read about Little Man.

That article, of course, led me down the "rabbit hole" and I found numerous wonderful stories about these amazing dogs and what they have to go through to be called search and rescue dogs, as well as the type of work they are trained to do. I also read about the health hazards and dangerous activities they willingly take on to do the job they love. You can read about that here.

Dogs are truly a remarkable thing. I have said before, and I will repeat here again, the dogs truly are a gift from God.

These dogs are trained to find missing people, like an 82 year old Alzheimer patient that wandered away from his home in 33 degree temperatures wearing only a thermal top and pajama bottoms. He was outside for approximately 7 hours in the weather before Tick, the search and rescue dog, found him and barked to alert his handler. All that man could remember about his experience is being licked in the face by a dog! Amazing.

Tick was a stray that had been picked up by police and taken to a shelter but the officer noted that he wanted to adopt him if no one came to get him. Once Tick was with the officer, he underwent rigorous training and became the search and rescue dog that saved this man's life. Here is a link to the article about Tick.

Not only do the dogs undergo rigorous training, but the handlers must also be trained to interact with the dogs in such a way that it encourages the dogs to do their jobs without distractions. Here is a story about one of those handlers and all she had to do to become a search and rescue dog handler.

Search and rescue dogs find missing people, dead bodies, crime scenes, disaster victims that are buried in debris, they also find bombs in war torn areas. Here is an article about Children against Mine Programs where a little girl in New Hampshire helps to raise funds to train mine sniffing dogs. This is an amazing program and I was totally unaware of it before reading here.

This was an amazing "rabbit hole" adventure that I thoroughly enjoyed and I hope you will too. Below, I have listed several videos about these dogs for you to enjoy.

https://youtu.be/CzgbambZVPI

https://youtu.be/8Q5r6fm_Dwg

https://youtu.be/qdDmCJ-A2-M

https://youtu.be/OuuB4JsvRU8

https://youtu.be/8-1MjvKdJSo

Monday, March 6, 2023

Dogs Really Are Man's Best Friend

I love dogs. I love all dogs. I even love dogs who bark and snarl at me. I have been bitten by stray dogs and I even love them. Call me crazy, but I think dogs are God's gift to mankind.

I have always had a dog, sometimes without any parental permission. When my mother told me I could not have a dog, I found a puppy and built her a home in a vacant lot and went there everyday before and after school to feed and play with her. I had her for almost a year before my parents found out and called animal control to come get her. She was such a dear and I was mad for months and months. She was well cared for and well fed, so I did not see the reason for them to pick her up. Of course, I was about 8 at the time.

Anyway, I love dogs. I also love cats, birds, lizards, insects, mice, rats, hedgehogs, hamsters, guinea pigs, llamas, burros, horses, etc. I think you get the drift. I love animals, period. I think animals are way nicer than most humans I have been exposed to in my life. With an animal, what you see is what you get. They do not play games about who they are.

So, how does all this relate to the title of this blog? I'll tell you. I have been thinking quite a bit today about all the dogs in the Ukraine and Turkey that are at risk of either starving or being killed. I feel very sad by that thought. I do understand that people will put people first in emergency situations, but I don't necessarily agree with that idea. I think all life is important and has value.

On that note, let's talk about dogs that have been abused, mistreated, or worse and how they were still able to be loving and friendly with humans; even to the point of rescuing those humans. If you search Google, you will find numerous articles and stories about such dogs that proved themselves to be heroes. Here are a few such articles:

Dogs have always been of service to humans.

They were first tamed and socialized to help shepherds protect and herd their flocks. They spent centuries doing this and helping the families they lived with. In today's world, dogs fulfill a myriad of protective uses.

Dogs are trained for search and rescue--

There are dogs trained especially to find various things such as bodies, blood, wounded people, drugs, bombs, chemicals and more. These dogs routinely risk their lives to perform dangerous jobs with only a pat on the head for a good outcome.

Dogs are trained to assist people--

There are dogs that routinely work with disabled and chronically ill people to help them maintain independence and keep them safe. These dogs provide daily living help as well as mental health benefits. There are so many people that could not be maintained at home if not for these wonderful dogs.

Dogs are used for social support and mental health care--

There are dogs who have been trained to be support dogs. Who monitor their person for signs of distress and have been trained on ways to help. There are dogs who smell signs of oncoming seizures and alert their person to lie down and remain safe. There are dogs who identify health concerns by smell and alert their person to seek medical assistance.

So, now I hope you can see why I love dogs. They truly are God's gift to mankind.

Friday, January 15, 2010

Search and Rescue Dogs from Around the World Go to Haiti

I received this article in my email from a veterinarian and I feel it is important to post it here also. I am not even beginning to compare my little man with the "official" search and rescue dogs out there. Sometimes my Satch has trouble finding his toys, so I don't think he would be of any help in Haiti. However, there are real search and rescue dogs and I think it is wonderful that so many from all around the world are heeding the call for help. Historiscally, rat terriers were used for "going underground" in the hunt, but I'm not sure that my Satchmo knows that.

At the end of the article is a plea for help and if you can donate anything, please do. Our friends and family around the world are doing all they can to help the population of Haiti and we can help too. Anything at will be helpful. Not all of us have "sniffer" dogs, but we all have money for coffee or cokes that we could send along to the rescue organizations.
___________________________________________________________________________________
By Jennifer Viegas

Professionally trained "sniffer" search dogs from around the
world have been recruited this week to aid rescue operations
in earthquake-ravaged Haiti. The effort appears to be unprecedented
in scale, matching the devastation already documented in the
Caribbean country.

French teams with "sniffer dogs" were seen boarding vans yesterday,
headed to the airport on their way to Haiti. The dogs are trained
to serve, so many excitedly jumped forward on their leashes in
apparent anticipation.

China dispatched a chartered plane containing multiple sniffer
dogs and 10 tons of tents, food and medical equipment. A somber
ceremony was held at the Beijing airport before the teams left,
with handlers and their dogs lined up, equipment at the ready.
The team from China arrived in Haiti today and is presently at
work there.

An Itar Tass bulletin reports that a team from the Russian Ministry
for Emergency Situations (EMERCOM) left Moscow today, also bound
for Haiti. The IL-76 plane contained 22 rescuers in total. Among
the team were eight doctors, two psychologists and six canine
specialists with search and rescue dogs. Another news report
mentioned that the dogs--3 Labradors, 2 golden retrievers and a
German shepherd--helped to ease the tension of those on board the
plane, which had a stop off in Iceland. The dogs are traveling
freely, without cages, but onlookers are discouraged from having
contact with the on-duty dogs. An EMERCOM spokesperson said, "The
dogs are to work heavily in stress conditions and their state
cannot be put in the slightest jeopardy."

Peruvian firefighters Gustavo Villavisencio, with sniffer dog
Duncan, and Vanessa Diaz, with her trained dog Rory, were seen
preparing to depart for Haiti yesterday.

The Mexican Navy has also brought in a team with rescue dogs, as
well as food, equipment and other supplies for the earthquake
victims.

A large team from Taiwan filed into a local airport, once again
bound for Haiti. At least one rescue dog was seen accompanying
their contingent.

Britain's international development minister, Douglas Alexander,
reports that a 64-member team, including sniffer dogs, has left for
Haiti from London's Gatwick Airport, according to The Straits Times.

Dozens of other countries, including Spain, Iceland, Canada,
Germany, Venezuela and more, have pledged to send rescue teams,
doctors, cash and supplies. Most are already on the scene at the
Caribbean island.

The U.S. was among the first to help, with President Barack Obama
saying that Americans continue to "stand ready to assist the people
of Haiti." According to Rajiv Shah, and reported by Business Week,
the United States has sent two 72-member search and rescue teams
with dogs to help dig out survivors. Shah was designated by Obama
to coordinate the U.S. relief effort.

American organizations that train search and rescue dogs have
issued calls to action. For example, the National Disaster Search
Dog Foundation posted a deployment at 10 PM last night. Six dog-
and-handler teams have been sent to Haiti. (If you visit the NDSDF
website using the aforementioned link, you can watch a video
showing the early stages of the deployment.)

NDSDF executive director Debra Tosch said, "Our hearts go out to
our neighbors in Haiti, and we're honored to be able to help find
survivors of this terrible tragedy as part of CA-TF2 (the code name
for the task force). This is the day that our teams have trained
for; when the unthinkable happens, SDF Teams stand ready to
respond, bringing hope and comfort to victims and their loved ones."

Images and additional videos showing the NDSDF dogs at work on
other missions are at the foundation's YouTube page.

-------------------------------------------------
Haiti Earthquake: How You Can Help The Victims:
-------------------------------------------------

* The American Red Cross is accepting donations by phone. You can
text "HAITI" to 90999 to donate $10 to the Red Cross's efforts, or
call 1-800-Redcross or 1-800-257-7575. Visit their Web site to
find out more.

* Interaction, the largest coalition of U.S.-based NGOs focused
on the world's poor, has set up a Haiti relief donation page,
listing several participating organizations where you can donate.

* UNICEF is also accepting donations for the relief efforts in
Haiti and the Caribbean region. Visit their Web site or call
1-800-4UNICEF to donate.