Starting our search and rescue adventure

Oh how awfully sad for Ruby's people. You hear so many surgery stories with a positive outcome, it's horrible when it goes wrong. Just like people really.

 

Cool Sunday morning here and Edsel slept a full 40 minutes past breakfast! He must have been tired after yesterday's training. It was a bittersweet day with talk of poor Ruby and Charlie. Our ranks are a bit thin now as just a week before Ruby's surgery, Radar, another of our air scent dogs underwent TPLO. His handler has taken a leave from the team during his rehab, so her other dog Xena, is out as well. We're currently at just 3 certified K9 members, with Edsel and Cali both in training.
A good learning day for us yesterday. Our first search offered the opportunity to use some knowledge of scent movement and problem solving. Edsel was extremely interested and focused on a downed tree with heavy brush all around, though no victim located. It was obvious he was picking up the scent there and by determining the wind direction, we then moved our search pattern so he could work the area upwind and within a few minutes he located my team member. He was lying on the ground behind another large fallen tree. It was probably 50 meters from where Edsel was finding the scent pool. So the wind carried the continuous flow of scent from the source and it was all swirling about in that brush. A perfect example of how I have to be alert to Edsel's communication to me and learn to read the wind, terrain and conditions to help determine where to focus the search.
His second search was more basic but did help with his work on staying with the victim to alert. He flew like a maniac about 150 meters down a narrow, steep and slippery trail to find her tucked up under another fallen tree. Much barking, leaping and annoyance at how slowly his "2 legged" support team navigates the terrain. I swear he's part mountain goat!
It was a good day, sore muscles and tired feet. But happy to spend the evening recovering with my partner. The sudden loss of Ruby just helps remind me how fragile life can be. Snuggle your pups and your loved ones daily! ❤️

 

Good work Edsel x
Enjoy those Mummy hugs

 

Oh my, it's just amazing to read your post. I am full of admiration for you all.

 

Well no training last weekend. At least for us and at formal training. My sis and I have been trying to find a weekend to run off and hide from the whole lot for years and finally got it done. Wonderful rest with lots of food and drink and even a nap! Edsel was home with OH and BIL. Good heavens! He may never forgive me. How do you go off fishing and not realize you've been gone for 7 hours! And missed Edsel's dinner hour! Unacceptable! Thank heaven for my sweet neighbor who came to the rescue for potty break and dinner. Tuesday night at training was our monthly business meeting and classroom work. This weekend is Easter, so another off weekend. Will work on our general obedience, take hikes and work on getting acclimated to warmer temps. Did receive our student manual for preparing to take our K9 certification... Eventually. Now if I can just get Edsel to read it.

 

Little late with an update, but been trying not to lose my mind with my ahem, "adult" children this past week. Toddlers are a breeze compared to 20 and 30 something year old kids! But I digress. Training with Edsel last Saturday went quite nicely. We returned for our second trip to the abandoned school building. I was anxious to see how it would go, since he was so anxious last trip. We also hadn't done any building work since that time. We completed 2 searches this time. When he first went back in the building, he showed some signs of uncertainty, but he did a little sniffing about, got some pets and ear scratches from team members and then went on as if nothing wrong. He confidently ran thru the building, up and down stairs and through rooms without any signs of fear. He was again very excitable on his first search. And once again, I believe I was too vocal with him, too much verbal direction, which seems to contribute to that. He successfully located victims in one of the upper floors as well as in the dark, damp basement. He was much calmer on the 2nd search as I spoke little and just allowed him more freedom and waited for him to follow my lead on which area we'd move to, rather than calling him back. I also learned to really observe him and feel confident in saying that there is no one in an area based on his behavior. Something just as important as locating someone in an area. Had some interesting scent work during the day, learning how windows and doors will pull scent through the building, how broken pipes and ducts can funnel scent from a victim to another side of room or even a different room. A completely different type of searching. Also discussion of how the dogs may not be able to reach a victim depending on the situation, such as damage or collapse of structure and that handlers will need to trust that the dog is correct in detecting scent and people will need to further explore and search to locate and reach the victims for rescue. This weekend we have a PR event at a vet clinic, so no training. Lots of rain in our forecast, so not a bad plan.