A search-and-rescue dog is one trained to find missing people after a natural or

man-made disaster Anthropogenic hazards are hazards caused by human action or inaction. They are contrasted with natural hazards. Anthropogenic hazards may adversely affect humans, other organisms, biomes, and ecosystems. They can even cause an omnicide. The fre ...

. The dogs detect human scent and have been known to find people under water, under snow, and under collapsed buildings.

Applications

A dog with aptitude for finding dead bodies or body parts, whether buried, hidden or submerged, may be called a "cadaver dog". In Croatia such dogs have been used to find burial sites almost 3000 years old. Police, death investigators and anthropologists may work closely with cadaver dogs and their handlers.

Training

Training of a search dog is usually begun when the dog is still a puppy.

Organizations

Numerous countries, cities and regions have search and rescue organizations using dog-and-handler teams that can be mobilized in an emergency or disaster. Here are a few organizations. *

International Rescue Dog Organisation The International Search and Rescue Dog Organisation (IRO) is the worldwide umbrella organisation for search and rescue dog work and partner of the UNO. It unites more than 250,000 people worldwide with about 2,000 certified search and rescue (SAR ...

(IRO) is the worldwide umbrella organisation for training and testing of search and rescue dog work. IRO partners with

International Search and Rescue Advisory Group The International Search and Rescue Advisory Group (INSARAG) is a network of disaster-prone and disaster-responding countries and organizations dedicated to urban search and rescue (USAR) and operational field coordination. It aims to establish s ...

and United Nations for coordinating disaster relief missions worldwide. *

FEMA Urban Search and Rescue Task Force Members of FEMA US&R Task Force at World Trade Center after the 9/11 attacks. A FEMA Urban Search and Rescue Task Force (US&R Task Force) is a team of individuals specializing in urban search and rescue, disaster recovery, and emergency triage a ...

, US teams of dogs and handlers which are deployed to emergency and disaster sites within hours. *

Emergency Response Team Search and Rescue Emergency Response Team Search and Rescue (ERTSAR) is an INSARAG listed international disaster response NGO search and rescue team, with bases in Henley-on-Thames, United Kingdom and Toronto, Canada. Founding ERTSAR was founded in the UK on 1 De ...

respond to emergencies and disasters in United Kingdom and Canada. * Special Tasks and Rescue Dog Operations Unit supports the South Australia Police with tracking, searching, and finding lost persons. * Alabama Search and Rescue supports public safety agencies in Alabama with tracking, searching, and finding lost persons using scent discrimination trailing Bloodhounds. www.ALSAR.gov

Notable dogs

* Beauty, a Wirehaired Terrier, was a search and rescue dog during the Second World War in England. * Jake, a Labrador Retriever, was a search and rescue dog that worked the disasters of the September 11 attacks (2001) and

Hurricane Katrina Hurricane Katrina was a destructive Category 5 Atlantic hurricane that caused over 1,800 fatalities and $125 billion in damage in late August 2005, especially in the city of New Orleans and the surrounding areas. It was at the time the cost ...

(2005). * Orion, a Rottweiler, helped save the lives of at least 37 people in 1999 from drowning during flash floods in Vargas, Venezuela. * Rex, entered burning buildings to find trapped people during the Second World War in England. * Mancs, a German Shepherd trained to find people buried by earthquakes.

References

External links