It鈥檚 all fun and games
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- Published on Wednesday, October 17, 2018
Neepawa Vet Clinic hosts Search and Rescue demo
Photos by Cassandra Wehrhahn
Gypsy, nicknamed 鈥淕yp鈥�, and dog trainer Kent were ready for their closeup at the Neepawa Vet Clinic.
By Cassandra Wehrhahn
Neepawa Banner & Press
Visitors to the Neepawa Vet Clinic during the 11-2 p.m. open house got a bit of a treat on Oct. 5 in the form of a search and rescue demo, provided by visiting dog trainer Kent and rescue dog Gypsy.
Gypsy is five years old, and has been training with Kent, who got started with an ex Brandon City Police member who taught him, for roughly three years. The Neepawa guest spoke to the Banner & Press, dishing out the details on Gypsy鈥檚 current status and how exactly search and rescue training works.
The training
All search and rescue dogs receive the same training as police dogs. Gypsy began this training by completing what is known as a 鈥渄ouble line pass鈥�, which is created by a person walking a three foot track one way then back, and essentially tests to see if the dog undergoing training will use their nose. The distance following the initial test is then increased. Any dog undergoing training must be able to track on a line for 1,000 meters to pass the 水果视频 certification.
鈥淎t this point Gypsy can track on a long line [which is attached to her harness], or she can track off leash, where I can release her in the bush or open fields,鈥� Kent relayed. 鈥淪he wears a GPS collar that works within a nine mile radius so I know where she is.鈥�
All training is formulated around a game, and Gypsy鈥檚 game is her toy. Whether she is looking for a lost person in a real world scenario, or she鈥檚 in training, it鈥檚 always the toy she鈥檚 looking for.
鈥淲hen the toy is found, it鈥檚 a game that she鈥檚 found it,鈥� said Kent. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 what they do it all for.鈥�
After a dog has found the missing person, they are trained to sit with that person and bark to alert the handlers, who may be far away if the dog was released for an off-line search. Aside from alerting the dog鈥檚 handlers, the barking [in tandem with the GPS] provides them with a location.
Gypsy returns her toy after a successsful demo search. The red toy was invisible in the snow.
How Search and Rescue is deployed
Like in any other emergency situation, in the event of a missing person [be it a child, adult, or elderly] Kent says the first number you should dial is 911.
鈥淔or a dog team and Search and Rescue to be deployed in 水果视频, if a person is missing, the first phone call to make is to 911. The RCMP or your local police have Search and Rescue teams and when they need assistance they will contact the office of the Fire Commissioner who then calls in the Provincial Search and Rescue volunteers,鈥� Kent explained. 鈥淎s volunteers, we don鈥檛 get paid to do it, it鈥檚 all our own time, and that鈥檚 what Gypsy and I are for.鈥�
Following the interview, Kent and Gypsy demonstrated a search. Due to the amount of early October snow, a real person was not used, but her toy was a handy stand-in.
To simulate a real search, Gypsy was first kept inside so she could not see where the toy was thrown. After the toy was promptly lobbed out into the powdery white blanket, Gypsy was then called out with the key phrase 鈥渇ind it鈥� starting her search. Nose to the ground, the eager search and rescue dog soon located the toy鈥檚 鈥渟cent cone鈥� and successfully retrieved it.
Busting a myth
Contrary to popular belief, the highly trained canines cannot simply sniff one of the missing person鈥檚 belongings and then go find them. This strategy, commonly portrayed in media, is simply a Hollywood myth. For a search to be successful, it is important that the area has been frequented as little as possible since the disappearance.
