Search & Rescue Dog Training
this might look like a typical dog
obedience class but these dogs are
training for a very important job to
search and rescue I find that there’s
not enough out there and it’s partly my
job to help people to train these dogs
to go out there for the missing person
for the missing for the family of the
missing people Maryann has come in from
a Labrador where she runs a search dog
training school she’s a very well-known
and and knowledgeable resource and we
have members from around the province
here training I’ve been a search manager
for about twenty plus years up in the
Cheka Valley and one of the issues that
always comes up is the search dogs that
help on searches and as a search manager
I thought I really need to know more
about how the dogs work and what they do
and what they’re capable of and what
their limitations might be I thought it
was necessary to come out here and help
provide some training to people that are
interested in the search and rescue dog
field not that I know it all by any
means but I do have vast experience in
the dog training field from obedience
tracking and search and rescue which I
volunteer for and I basically like to
communicate that and put more search
dogs out there for the missing person
with training dogs become extremely
valuable members to a search-and-rescue
team they will send for for people for
objects that relate to the people it’s a
great way to turn a dog and a handler
loose in an area to look after one area
what we have searched is looking in
another area dogs can cover a large area
in a smaller amount of time then several
people can dogs are as valuable as as
well as the training is so I mean you
have to put a lot of time in training a
dog it’s not simply taking the dog off
the couch and putting them out in the
field and the handlers need training as
well
handlers learn training techniques they
can continue to practice to improve
their dog search-and-rescue skills I
came in wanting to challenge some of the
dogs and to see where their training was
at and then try to makes you know make
some suggestions on where to go with
their dogs and we worked on some of the
alerts to strengthen the alerts up as
well as you know seeing where they at
with looking for missing objects which
are scent related as well as looking for
the missing person the training also
included working up close with some of
the other dogs and strangers we did some
transportation type tests even though it
was in a stationary vehicle we never
know when we’re going to be transported
in with another dog and we need to have
our dogs understand that when we put you
in this situation you need to relax and
remain calm
and just wait because we’re gonna get
there and you’re going to get out in and
do your thing I’ve definitely learned
quite a few things already that I hadn’t
really thought of as to how they work
and you know where they’re going to be
effective and where they’re not
it’s nice to see a whole bunch of dogs
and to see how they they differ in in
their training in their abilities and
their specializations without them I may
go by where your missing person is you
know it takes a while to locate them so
support your local SAR dog team support
your local ground SAR team or any other
search-and-rescue team that’s out there
and it makes for better communities and
safer communities your local search and
rescue team is always looking for more
volunteers in an mo for the daily I’m
Kelly Robinson
