Search and Rescue Dogs Canada-Wide

Below is a very brief list of excerpts that show how civilian-trained SAR dog/handler teams are used throughout Canada.  Fortunately, the agencies that are responsible for calling out volunteer resources in Newfoundland and Labrador (primarily the RCMP) have already-existing policies regarding calling out civilian-trained SAR dog / handler teams.  What this means to all concerned parties is that a working relationship between law enforcement, ground Search and Rescue, and K9 Search and Rescue should be easy to implement.

Excerpts are in small italics and pertinent items highlighted in red.  Everything else is our notations.

On our links page there are many SAR dog sites from around the world. 

RCMP website--Definitions of initial SAR response possibilities for RCMP Search Commander

http://www.rcmp-grc.gc.ca/ccaps/sar_e.htm 

“Initial SAR responses may involve one or more of the following:

• Police Service Dog Team

• Trained volunteer SAR civilian dog team

• Trained volunteer or RCMP Hasty Teams

• RCMP helicopter equipped with Forward Looking Infrared (FLIR)

• Trained volunteer "specialist" teams (avalanche, white water, ice rescue, etc.)

• Trained volunteer SAR divers (although most areas use RCMP Dive Teams)

• Trained human trackers and other SAR trained persons. “

RCMP website (Police Dog Service Training Centre), in honor of Cpl. Jim Galloway:

Cpl Galloway managed the RCMP Civilian Search and Rescue Service Dog Program in Alberta. He has been an active member and team coordinator for Northern Alberta Wilderness Search and Rescue, instrumental in training and certifying to an approved standard, numerous civilian search and rescue dog teams in Alberta. Cpl Galloway’s consistent, thorough, and professional approach to any task has been his trademark; qualities he has imparted on those who worked alongside of him.

RCMP website (Nova Scotia)--Definitions of responsibilities of PDS in the province:

National Search and Rescue Secretariat website directory of teams:

https://www.nss.gc.ca/sar_directory/orgDetails_e.asp?org_id=223 

Lunenburg County Ground Search and Rescue

“…Resources include a command bus, a logistics bus, two transport vans, ATV, boat and two EMRTs. Thirty volunteer members. This Team has an RCMP certified civilian search dog.”

RCMP website, a Camrose search incident:

...On the 26th of April 2003 further ground searches were conducted utilizing an RCMP Search Master, RCMP Police Dog Service, Civilian Cadaver Dogs, Civilian Search & Rescue personnel, RCMP Identification Service, a University of Alberta anthropologist and other RCMP members....

RCMP website, a homocide investigation:

The ground search which had been conducted in the east portion of Leduc County, on the 13th of September, did not result in the discovery of anything relevant to the investigation of Sylvia BALLANTYNE. Volunteers from Edmonton Regional Ground Search and Rescue Team and the RCMP Civilian Search Dog Team along with members of Leduc RCMP searched an area in excess of 160 square miles.

From the National Search and Rescue Secretariat website, autumn 1999 SARSCENE magazine: http://www.nss.gc.ca/site/ss/magazine/vol9_2/SFall99E.pdf

“The Ideal Search"

Everyone dreams of the ideal search, but somehow it never seems to happen. Until now. On 29 July, Cst Joel Mackown, the RCMP dogmaster at the Edmonton International Airport called the RCMP Civilian Search Dog Association (RCMP/CSDA) for help. A mother, her four children, and a niece and nephew were reported overdue. Mr. Peters reported that his wife and family had gone to the Fort Assiniboine Sand Hills Wildlife Park, located approximately 25 miles (40 km) north of Barrhead, Alberta, and had not  returned. When he had gone to the park to look for them, he found their empty vehicle still in the parking lot...

From the Canadian Search Dog Association (CSDA) website:

Requesting the CSDA for a search

The Canadian Search Dog Association can only respond to a search when requested and cleared to do so by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. The following procedures must be followed without exception.

If your search falls within the jurisdiction of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police:

• Notify the RCMP that there is a lost, missing, or overdue person. They have the mandate to conduct search and rescue operations in their jurisdiction.
• The RCMP will contact the local RCMP dog handler for that geographical area to attend the scene.
• With the SAR Manager, the local RCMP dog handler will evaluate the situation and determine if civilian dog resources may be required.

If your search falls outside the jurisdiction of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police:

• The tasking agency (i.e.. Municipal Police Forces, Parks Canada, DND) will contact the Canadian Search Dog Association directly

From the Chilliwack, BC Search and Rescue website:  http://chilliwacksar.org/Index.aspx?Page=Dogs

Dogs have long been a valued Resource during search and rescue operations. The responsibility for searching with dogs falls to the RCMP Police Dog Services (PDS). In recent time, a process to be able to validate civilian dog teams was established with the cooperation of the Provincial Emergency Program (PEP), the RCMP PDS and the BC Search Dog Association following various models such as the Canadian Avalanche Rescue Dog Association.

Civilian Search dog teams use a variety of different breeds of dogs; all must go through initial training which is very labour intensive and time consuming and not all dogs are suitable to work under these conditions. Training is consistent with the PEP course training standard for Search and Rescue dogs and all dogs must be validated on an annual basis, by the RCMP. Once a search dog team is validated , training is ongoing to meet the Stringent standards required to revalidate annually.

Chilliwack SAR is fortunate to have three such validated teams who are deployed under the direction of the RCMP PDS.

From Kamloops Search and Rescue (BC):  http://www.ksar.ca/SearchDogs/SearchDog.html

KSAR Search Dog, Kona

Kona is a Bernese mountain dog whose parents originated in Hungary.  Kona’s mother came to Canada while pregnant and Kona was born in Abbotsford, BC on June 1, 2003.  After 2 years of intensive training, Kona was certified by the RCMP on July 27, 2005.  Eleven hours after being certified as a rescue dog, Kona was an avid member of a search team called out to look for two missing hikers at Sun Peaks.  One month after being certified, Kona was instrumental in rescuing a young woman who had been missing for 7 hours in cold weather.  Within 30 minutes of arriving on site, Kona had located the subject and we’re happy to say she was safely returned home.  This rescue would not have been as successful without the quick detection of our search dog.

From "Canine Heroes" website:

The Canadian Avalanche Rescue Dog Association (CARDA) was officially established in 1980. A volunteer, non-profit group, it trains avalanche rescue dogs and their handlers according to standards developed by the Bergwacht, the world-renowned German mountain rescue group. Over the years – thanks largely to the involvement of the RCMP and ex-RCMP dog handlers, who contribute so much to the training and evaluation of CARDA dogs – CARDA has itself gained an international reputation for excellence.

From Canadian Avalanche Rescue Dog Association (CARDA) website:

City of Surrey, BC website: Canada's First Disaster Dog

"...Two-and-a-half-years and a couple of thousand hours of training after picking up his eight-week-old puppy, Hillier describes the routine is "almost like a second job".

After paying for four levels of Human Dog Leadership courses in Coquitlam, B.C., Cody was qualified for general search work. Monthly trips to Washington State for disaster search honed Cody's skills further. There were also advanced dog handler training courses with special assessments and guidance by the R.C.M.P. Police Dog Services.

With the certification complete, Hillier and Cody have been put in select company as the Canine Search Specialist with the Urban Search and Rescue, Canada Task Force One, based in Vancouver. The 62 person group is Canada's National Disaster Response Team which is funded jointly by the federal government and the City of Vancouver. The team, (the United States has 26 similar squads), has been set up to go anywhere in the world.

Other applications for the dogs skills are: area searches following plane crashes, train derailments, flooding or tornadoes. Water searches see the dog used in a boat or on shore to locate the victim's scent as it emits from the water. In a cadaver search the dog can pinpoint the location of a fire victim, clear a building and confirm there are no victims or assist recovery efforts in a drowning.

Fire Departments are not responsible for lost person searches but there will be times when Cody's services are requested by the R.C.M.P. or the Provincial Emergency Program. In searches it s imperative the search team be called out as soon as possible-before the area is contaminated with multiple scents."

From Urban Search and Rescue Canada Task Force 1 website: http://www.can-tf1.org/k9.html

"Cody" has been a member of the USAR team since 1998. He gained FEMA Type II(basic)certification in 1998 and Type I (advanced) certification in 1999.  FEMA is the federal agency that certifies search dogs nationally in the United States for locating people in collapsed structures ie. earthquakes, terrorist attacks. Cody is also certified to the provincial search dog standards set by the RCMP and PEP in the Province of BC for tracking,wilderness search, and avalanche search.

"Jake" is a Rotti/Lab cross trained at finding live human victims in disaster situations. He has been validated (June 05) for general search profile to meet PEP/RCMP standards in the province of B.C.  Jake was adopted from the City of Vancouver pound and has been happy to be working with firefighter Mark Pullen since 8 months of age.

From SARSCENE magazine, April 2004

DogSpeak database established for SAR dog teams across Ontario

A new database of search and rescue dog and handler teams, sponsored by Emergency Measures Ontario (EMO), has been created to manage these resources more efficiently.

The DogSpeak database, funded by the New SAR Initiatives Fund, will establish the known availability of SAR dog teams, including skills, qualifications, mobility and location.

Prior to this project, there was no central registry of qualifications and call-out information for dogs and handlers.

According to Staff Sergeant Larry Bigley of the O.P.P. Canine Unit, the database "will provide accurate profiles on search and rescue specialties and certifications of individual canine teams across the province, by both location and skill."

Once established in Ontario, this project will have application across Canada.

Ultimately, this project could help establish consistent national criteria for SAR dog standards, testing, communications strategies, protocols and record keeping.

From "Scent Dog News", October/December 2005

"One of the most extensive search and recovery operations ever conducted in west central Alberta has concluded with the recovery and removal of the body of a Caroline hunter killed in an accident west of Sundre......The investigation at this point indicates that the deceased had an accidental fall off a cliff ledge," said Sundre RCMP Const. Jim Lank, who has been coordinating the search. "Rocky steep terrain along with possible snow and ice at the time may have been contributing factors in the accident.........Searchers are crediting a seven-year-old air-scenting German Shephard named "Hill" for leading them to Howell’s body. "When the wind came down off the mountain, the dog wanted to go up the slope and investigate further," said Roger Tetreault, with Sundre Search and Rescue. "That made us focus on that area, bringing in the Kananaskis Country Rescue team. Basically within half an hour they located the subject. The dog was instrumental." Mary-Ann Warren, with the Search and Rescue Dog Association of Alberta, is Hill’s owner.

From the Ottawa Valley Search and Rescue Dog Association's website:

....OVSARDA deployed three search dog teams to Elliott Lake on 30 July 1999, on request from North Shore SAR and the Elliott Lake Police Dept.....The next morning, the dogs were again put out to re-confirm the previous evening's alerts and to try to pinpoint a location in the 100' deep water. Dive teams were sent down, but could only stay down for 15 minutes at a time due to the great depth. Two dives per day were the maximum possible. On the third day, Vinnie Yeo was found in the area where the dogs had indicated, 96' below the surface.