Right now I would like to take the time to send my thoughts and prayers to all the victims and their families of this horrible tragedy. I wish the best for all the SAR dog teams ,workers, and bomb detection dogs that are working day and night to find survivors,evidence and secure safety. My hat is off to these dogs and teams that are risking their lives for others. These dogs define the true meaning of the working dog.

Amen and thanks for posting that.

I hope all of us Americans who train dogs will seriously consider any future calls for experienced trainers needed to train dogs for security purposes, etc. This hasn't happened yet, but there is sure to be a much wider need for service dogs in the future.

At this time in history we MUST put aside any petty little differences that we may have against each other and work together as
we are all working for the same goal, which is the safety of human life and to find any and all lost people. According to the news, 12 FEMA K-9 teams (8 in New York and 4 in Washington DC), along with possibly countless other K-9 teams and other SAR units are in Washington DC and New York right now.

I'm so relieved (but not surprised) that you guys are not feeding the rumor mill. There has been nothing short of hysteria on the pet dog and some of the working dog lists (those guys should know better) about the SAR teams. Here are the facts:

The urban disaster teams are deployed by FEMA, a federal agency that is well funded and the teams are well equipped, experienced and understand the tasks. The *only* other K9 teams authorized to be on site will be members of law enforcement.
Numerous bogus requests for supplies and $ are floating about. Likely, some of the b.s. info is the result of *freelancers* showing up. These teams are not authorized to be on site, and likely are showing up ill prepared and not properly trained, thus being a hinderance.
The Director of FEMA, Joe Allbaugh has requested that *no* supplies be sent to NYC or DC. FEMA has set up a special fund for $ contributions, info is on the FEMA site, http://www.fema.gov.
Or, you can donate to Red Cross. Those folks know how to get $ where it is needed.
Please pass this info along to well meaning folks who will want to send packages that will either never arrive or be disposed of promptly (who in NYC is going to open strange packages right now??). Ask ppl to use a shred of common sense.
Sorry if I'm testy, you would not believe the # of hrs I've put in chasing down rumors and opening nasty em's from pet (and ack show ppl, what a surprise) telling me what a jerk I am for not wanting them to send booties for the doggies. Geeeezzzzz.
You can also find the address for the fund on my web site.

Pete,
I also wanted to respond to your post about training future SAR dogs. Unfortunately, bunches of folks likely *will* decide SAR would be a cool thing to do. Which will be a royal pia for the real SAR trainers. Too many folks want to get on TV, not do the work. They show up sporadically for training and goof around. They have no understanding of the time and physical demands of SAR work. Nor do they grasp the expense involved.
And . . . they rarely show up w/the right dog. They bring out their overweight zero drive pets and think they can magically be transformed into SAR dogs.
If someone seriously wants to get involved in SAR (either wilderness or urban disaster), I'd suggest they go out several times w/some teams (teams *always* need practice *subjects*) to see what it's about. If they really feel they can hack it, their next step is to purchase a pup that can WORK from a legit breeder who knows how to produce working dogs. And they need to discuss this w/their employers, family, etc and make sure they are going to be able to get away for days at a time.

Joy, you are correct. Fortunately, unqualified candidates will wash out pretty quickly. A few early morning practices in the rain, mud, wind, and heavy underbrush or rough terrain, and the faint of heart will drop out. If they do stick with it for the year plus that it takes to train for certification, they certainly won't pass their cert if they're not capable. I know that with my team, if you don't have what it takes, they will tell you. They don't have the time and energy to help train someone and their dog if there is no point in it, and they're pretty honest about that from the start.

The people in my area think that the Bloodhound is God's gift to SAR and will bash any other breed that tries it. The Bloodhound is a useful breed for Urban tracking, but it is NOT useful for real SAR like what I plan for my dogs. In a disaster like this one, the dog has to be able to air scent off lead. Besides, the dog in this area had a very questionable find in March. :rolleyes:

Welllllllll, J. Alot depends on who is doing the certifying. I've seen teams who get 1-2 ppl certified to *certify* and pretty soon you've got everyone cetifying each other and things start to slip.
Take a look at what agency does the certifying in your area. You may find that the folks during the certifying are not LEOs nor even professional dog trainers.
At least urban disaster teams have to meet FEMA standards.

The bloodhound is an amazing animal and has its place among the ranks of SAR dogs, but it certainly is not appropriate for every job, and is not the end all and be all of scent work. Where I live, due to the rainy climate, Labs are very popular, as well as GSDs. I've seen some mixed breeds and Goldens working SAR as well. I'm curious though about using Border Collies for SAR work. I understand that the breed in general is still pretty pure, and that they have very strong working drives. I'm actually thinking about getting a working BC puppy to train for SAR in the distant future, when my current dog is no longer able to work. Anybody have any thoughts on this? My biggest concern is that BCs are so driven that it's a full time job just keeping up with them! What I like about my Lab is that he will calm down when I need him to, he's not a hyper nut. I'm concerned that a BC might be a bit too high energy, but I like the idea of working with an animal that is as eager to please and as driven as BCs are reported to be.

Joy, I think we posted at the same time. Yes, I see your point about certification. Fortunately, I'm confident that certifications in my state are handled professionally. I haven't taken a cert yet, I'm still a ways away from being ready, but these tests are recreations of real-life search situations, and are administered by professionals. You can view our state certification requirements at http://www.proaxis.com/~wvsardogs/osdc.htm

Our team isn't a member of this organization, but we do use the OSSA standards for all SAR personnel, not just dog teams.