I am a nominee for The American Humane Association 2013 Hero Dog of the Year. I started life in a shelter, then got adopted and started my career as a Search and Rescue dog 4 1/2 years ago. I find missing and deceased people during tragedies. I also get called in for water recoveries after someone has drowned. I am the one who finds the victim so their family can have closure. It is always terribly sad, but I feel it's my calling to help people. One of those searches made a very deep impression on my heart. A mother whispered to me that I was her only hope to find her child. She put her faith in dogs. Then she hugged me and we looked straight into each other's eyes. There was a bond I can't describe, but it was there. At that moment, I made a silent promise that I would not let her down.
I went out on the river and we searched for hours. Each time we got to a certain place on the water, I dipped my head and touched it with my nose. Everyone on the boat knew what that meant. But the tough part for a search team is that you can't confirm anything to the family until the victim is brought up out of the water and identified. Sometimes we find a person, but it isn't the person we thought we were looking for. Sometimes, it is too dangerous to recover the victim and there is nothing you can do. But I'd made a promise and I knew who I had found. I had to figure out a way to gently tell that mom that her son was no longer missing, but he would never come home again.
I went out on the river and we searched for hours. Each time we got to a certain place on the water, I dipped my head and touched it with my nose. Everyone on the boat knew what that meant. But the tough part for a search team is that you can't confirm anything to the family until the victim is brought up out of the water and identified. Sometimes we find a person, but it isn't the person we thought we were looking for. Sometimes, it is too dangerous to recover the victim and there is nothing you can do. But I'd made a promise and I knew who I had found. I had to figure out a way to gently tell that mom that her son was no longer missing, but he would never come home again.
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