Dog Talk

The official unofficial newsletter for FEMA dog handlers
February 2003 - Volume 6, Number 1

From The Editor

Taylor and the Jaguar

 It’s a long sordid story really.  Taylor was diagnosed with Pannus (chronic superficial keratitis) when she was about a year old.  This disease is chronic inflammation of the cornea, which affects both eyes.  If left untreated, Pannus causes blindness.  The veterinary ophthalmologist put Taylor on daily Predisone and Cyclosporine and informed me “that prolonged exposure to sun, wind and dust could further irritate her eyes….” 

Hmmm, sun, wind and dust????  That pretty much describes our training, right?   And deployments could certainly be a bit dusty…. (Think: World Trade Center)  So, it was at that point two and a half years ago that I realized the Tay-dog might have had her rubble pass revoked.  (Keep in mind here that I previously had a perfectly healthy dog who died young of cancer – it would be stupid to put so much time into a dog that I know has health problems…)

It wasn’t a good time to get another dog, so I have been half-heartedly training Taylor - just to test my tenacity I think.  I just haven’t been able to bear putting a lot of time and dedication into a dog that would require sunglasses on the rubble.  And ask anyone – the dog is a defiant little brat – she’d never keep those sunglasses on!

Then it happened.  Joe and I were sitting at a trendy little café in Colorado last summer.  We had just watched way-too-many dogs fail the Type II and I tests in Boulder and Denver.  I was looking out the window at a lovely black XK8 and drinking a cold microbrew when Joe said, “I’ll buy you a Jag if you can get Taylor certified.”

What?????  I was on my first beer.  He would buy me a Jaguar?????  My favorite car in the entire world?  YES!!!!!  YES!!!!!  A Jag to get Taylor certified!!??  I would do it.  I could do it.  O.K. - so I have wasted the first 3 years of her impressionable little life…. She does Direct (15 yards), Obedience (on lead), Bark Alert (IF she is in the mood) and will almost always do a perfect recall.  Well, ok – sometimes she will come when she is called….  And he didn’t specify Type I.  Certainly I can get the little hellion to Type II.  

Then I could drive the new Jag to go dog shopping….

Two weeks later, Joe and I were driving down the street and were passed by a shiny new lime green Volkswagon bug.  He said, “OK, I will buy you a brand new VW bug right now, OR, you can hold out for Taylor to get certified and I will buy you a Jaguar then.” 

Can you believe that I am not driving a new VW bug?  What on earth was I thinking?

(Does anybody have a long-legged, bi-color Czech shepherd who could be a stand-in???)  

Endnote:  There is a strong breed predisposition for Pannus in German Shepherds, but it also frequently affects Border Collies, Tervurens, Australian Shepherds and Huskies.   Keep an eye on your dog’s eyes!!

USAR in Canada

By Kim Cooper

Canada is not a nation that is prone to disasters.   We do not experience significant tropical storms or hurricanes.   Tornadoes, and associated damage, tend to be highly localized phenomenon that only rarely cause building collapse.   We have never had an Oklahoma City, or a 9/11 (though in 1917 the city of Halifax did experience the largest man-made explosion prior to the atomic age, when a munitions ship collided with another ship in the harbor - the explosion killed nearly 2000 people).   A west coast earthquake is perhaps our most likely event requiring the deployment of a USAR task force, yet it has been over 50 years since we experienced an earthquake with loss of life.

Despite this, Canada’s progress towards a national USAR program has accelerated tremendously in the past few years.   Federally, and in conjunction with provincial authorities, the Canadian government has supported the development of Heavy USAR (or HUSAR) teams in strategic centers across the country:  Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto, and Halifax.    The Vancouver task force gained United Nations recognition in 2001.  Toronto has quickly built a high caliber team.   On a regional level, several other cities are also taking steps to develop HUSAR capabilities.  Ottawa, our national capital, and my hometown, is one such city.   For the most part, all these teams are based around their region’s fire departments, with additional support from other emergency response agencies and civilians.     All teams recognize the indispensability of search dogs in HUSAR.   To date, search dogs have been ‘recruited’ from the fire service, police and volunteer community.

There is no national standard for HUSAR dog teams at this time.  This doesn’t mean there are no standards at all.   Some of Canada’s HUSAR dog teams are certified to their team’s standards.   Some dog teams have sought out certification through outside agencies.   At least two Canadian dog teams were permitted to test for FEMA certification:  Sheldon Hillier and Cody (Golden Retriever) of the Vancouver unit, and me and Piper (Malinois), from Ottawa.   All the Canadian HUSAR dogs I have watched at work were trained to perform a FBILHS alert, and all demonstrated advanced agility skills, suggesting there is some national consensus in these areas, at least.

One of the challenges a HUSAR dog handler faces is the difficulty in getting together with others to share training ideas.   Nearly eighty percent of Canada’s population resides within 100 miles of the US-Canada border, stretching over 3800 miles from coast to coast.   Most of us live 800-1000 miles from the next group of HUSAR dogs.   Conversely, if I were to head south instead, I could (and did!) drop in on 8 FEMA task forces for the same amount of gas.

Finally, I’d like to take advantage of this forum to thank all those FEMA people who helped me to make my way through your certification testing.   From the handlers who allowed me play on their piles, to the evaluators who explained many of the nuances of the tests, to the coordinators who made it administratively simple as could be, you were of more help than you can ever know.

And a special thanks to the Type I evaluator who made sure that the final score in the Olympic hockey gold medal game between Canada and the US was radioed out to me while on Pile 1!     After all, to a Canadian, some things are more important than USAR………J

Cancer and SAR dogs

Please take the time to fill out the brief questionnaire below (highlighted in blue) and send it on to Amanda Downend, Study Director, Univ. of Penn, School of Veterinary Medicine. 

Her e-mail address is: adownend@vet.upenn.edu.

1)             Has a SAR dog of yours died of cancer?
2)             If yes, what type of cancer (if known)?
3)             Your name:
4)             Dog's name:
5)             Dog's date of birth:
6)             Dog's age when diagnosed with cancer:
7)             Breed:
8)             Deployment History:

Indiana Task Force medical team members attend veterinary training 
 

Indiana Task Force medical team members attended a veterinary training course for task force medical personnel at Methodist Hospital’s Medical Research Laboratory on Wednesday, January 15.  Rick Arnold, DVM of Pet Pals Veterinary Hospital brought Sadie, his German Shepherd mix for the training session.  INTF-1 handlers Janalee Gallagher and Blake Wallis were also coerced into attending, and allowed the team docs to practice on Lily and Scout.

Veterinary medical training is a required part of task force medical team training. Dr. Arnold and Sadie instructed the participants, which included Emergency Department physicians and paramedics from six Indiana counties, on proper care and handling of search dogs, including proper techniques of restraint, venipuncture, bandaging, intubation and anesthesia.

Methodist Hospital coordinates the medical component of the Indiana Task Force, which deploys two physicians and four paramedics on disaster operations.  During the deployment to New York, task force physician Dr. Stephanee Evers used her veterinary training to suture Kaiser, an INTF-1 German Shepherd who cut his leg on sharp steel while searching the World Trade Center site.

UPCOMING TESTS 

March 29-30, 2003         Harrisburg, PA               Type II Testing   Hosted by PATF-1

For test information, contact Chris Selfridge at: cselfridge@floodcity.net

ERK9 (International Emergency Response K9) will conduct a TYPE I and TYPE II FEMA Disaster Search Canine Readiness Evaluation (DSCRE), and training on April 25, 26, and 27, 2003. Testing teams are invited to stay for a training session with the evaluators on Sunday the 27th of April from 8:00am-2:00pm. There will be an opportunity for approved shadow evaluators. This event will take place at Recycling Technology Center, INC. and is supported by Mazza and Sons Demolition, 3230 Shafto Road, Tinton Falls, NJ 07753 (approximately 45min from Newark Airport )

The FEMA Canine Search Readiness Evaluation Application for Evaluation Form and $100.00 fee are due no later than April 7th, 2003.  ERK9 will provide continental breakfast, lunch, tee shirt and training to testing teams.  Applications can be mailed or faxed (Fax # 610 869 3599)
Pat Kaynaroglu, 601 Jennersville Road, Cochranville, PA 19330
phone #  : 610 869 9497 or pkaynaroglu@erk9.org              

--------------------------------                      

June 7-8, 2003   Virginia Beach, VA                    Type II Testing               Hosted by VATF-2

For test information, contact Bill Dotson sarbill@aol.com or call 434-985-3893

Or by mail 6022 Advance Mills Rd, Ruckersville, VA 22968.

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2003 California Test Schedule:

June 21-22      Los Angeles County Area (SoCal)  Apps. Due no later than  5/12/03

September 20-21 Orange County Area (SoCal)   Apps. Due no later than  8/11/03

December 6-7    San Francisco Bay Area (NoCal)   Apps. Due no later than  12/10/03

Applications, with a $25 testing fee attached can be sent to:  Lynne Engelbert, 19327 Northampton Dr., Saratoga, CA  95070-3330.  Checks should be made out to:  National Disaster Search Dog Foundation or NDSDF with CSSWG Account indicated on the "memo" line.

CA and re-certifying (CA & out-of-state) teams have priority with out-of-state testing teams welcome to fill remaining slots, if available.  For information on California tests, contact: 

Lynne Engelbert

FAX  (650) 604-7051 or (650) 604-0994 
Work - (650) 604-3112
Home - (408) 257-1784

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The National Certification List of FEMA Certified Disaster Canine Search Teams is provided by Lynne Engelbert. (Lynne's e-mail: lengelbert@mail.arc.nasa.gov) It is available on this web page.  To view it - click here.

**NOTE from Lynne**

We have begun to track the Date of Birth of all certified dogs. If you have a certified dog, please send your dog's DOB to Lynne Engelbert: lengelbert@mail.arc.nasa.gov

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KUDOS TO.......

Memphis, TN Results – December 2002

Type II Certified: Roger Piccard & Splash (FLTF-2), Andrew Pitcher & Andy (NETF-1) and Michael Pohl and Tan (TNTF-1)

San Jose, CA Results – January 2003

Type II Certified: Teresa Ortenberger & Ace (CA-OES), Deresa Teller & Ranger (CA-OES) and John Thomas & Mocha (CA-OES)

Type I Certified:  Keith Davis & Rose (WATF-1), Nicole Kesler & Phinney (INTF-1), Cliff Kolthoff & Jeff (CA-OES), Jeff Place & Zach (CA-OES), Steve Swaney & Sherman (CA-OES) and Hilda Wood & Ranger (FLTF-1)

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UPCOMING SEMINAR:

SEMINAR 

Behavior for the USAR dog - by John Rogerson 
April 28 & 29th 2003 in Miami, Florida

John is a motivational-positive reinforcement trainer/behaviorist par excellence and his background in the working trials, which includes SAR. Information about working trials can be found at 
http://waggin-tails.com/workingtrials/AAWTS.html 

LIMITED OPENINGS AVAILABLE. In light of the tremendous response for this seminar, the deadline for securing a slot via money order or cashier's check will be February 14, 2003. 
Handler contribution $60.00 / Observer contribution $30.00

Lunch is not included. Bring your own lunch or a catered lunch is available at an additional cost. Aggressive dogs or humans will not be tolerated at the seminar. John Rogerson will reserve the right to evaluate & dismiss dogs from the seminar for aggression. We will need handlers or observer's full name, attending dog's name, and proof of vaccinations. Please email Hilda Wood at Mbois19@aol.com for information and a mailing address.

Note-Rogerson is teaching a K9 behavior seminar just prior to the Miami seminar in the Tampa area April 26 & 27, 2003. Potentially handlers could attend both. For further information go to the following web site.
http://www.puppyworks.com/events/rogerson/jr0403fl.html 

For other events see web site calendar

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ROTATIONAL SCHEDULE

see next issue

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FEMA K9 WORKING GROUP UPDATE

Note the new title!  We have been elevated to a Working Group, as opposed to a Subcommittee.  This means we now have direct representation at the Operations Working Group Meetings.

Speaking of….

The Ops Group met last week and among other things, approved the new DSCREP (Disaster Search Canine Readiness Evaluation Process).  The next step is projected approval by the Task Force Leaders Meeting in March. Things are really moving now, folks.  To give you a head’s up on some of the major changes we will post a summary on the website.  They include:

Addition of the FEMA USAR Code of Ethics, including the addition of an ethics statement on all applications.  

An addition to the canine aggression policy, as to repercussions and reinstatement.

Limit of testing opportunities to become certified (per dog)

Clarification of re-certification timelines and expiration dates.

New evaluator guidelines.  (must be Type I handler)

Prohibition of physical abuse of the canine.

Clarification as to placement of leash in "long down" (can't be in front)

Clarification as to height of obstacles in Direct & Control

Agility:  Clarification as to height of unsteady surface 

           Clarification of the numbering system.
           Elimination of the "3 attempts".

Replaced Interview Checklist with Establishment of Scene Safety

Rubble:  Change as to size and height to more accurately reflect training and testing sites.
               Distractions allowed on any site and human remains scent is allowed on one site
               (Type I).

Pretest assessments no longer count towards the requirement to maintain evaluator status.

And perhaps the most important result of the Ops meeting last week in Washington, DC (concerning the canine element) was the passing of a motion to deploy ONLY certified canine teams after 7-1-04.

And to keep everyone fully informed, the minutes of the Canine Working Group conference calls will now be posted on the website.

We are looking forward to your feedback, 

Teresa MacPherson, 
Secretary, CWG
1-31-03

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Please forward any news, scheduled events, letters to the editor, or other info you want disseminated via DOG TALK, the underground canine newsletter to Anne Trout:  amccurdy@clarian.org