Honours For Four Legged Heros

[piper]

Apologies if this has been shared - I couldn't see it here and thought it was nice to share a good story.

http://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/news/christchurch-earthquake-2011/4971464/Honours-for-four-legged-heroes

The heroic Urban Search and Rescue dogs that padded and sniffed their way through the ruins of Christchurch's CBD are getting the recognition they deserve.

The 10 USAR dogs that worked at the forefront of the deadly February earthquake received bravery awards last weekend and are now the official charity of choice for the SBS Marathon.

The USAR Search Dog Association is run by volunteers who select their dogs from local pounds and train them to work in chaotic situations.

In the week following the earthquake ten sniffer dogs and their handlers searched more than 80 sites in Christchurch, hoping to uncover a miracle.

The dog association's president Tim Drennan, of Christchurch, said the dogs saved a number people trapped in rubble.

The 10 sniffer dogs were given a bravery award at the New Zealand Kennel Club National Dog Show in Feilding last weekend and the association has been chosen as the charity of choice for this year's SBS Marathon.

Drennan said he was speechless when he had heard the association had been chosen.

"I felt incredibly honoured for them to think of us, so far we have done everything off our own backs so this means a lot," he said.

The eight-man volunteer association meets twice weekly to train their dogs and Drennan said the funds from the event would be used to support the dog's training, transport and equipment.

Drennan said the dogs trained to work with the New Zealand Fire Service USAR team and were deployed in the 2005 Greymouth tornado, the 2007 Gisborne earthquake and Christchurch's two big quakes.

"In the aftermath of the Christchurch earthquake USAR dogs teams literally became man's best friend. My dog Boo and I were proud to be among the amazing dogs and their volunteer handlers who spent hours crawling over and through the rubble with positive results in very challenging situations.

"The majority of the dogs have been 'rescued' themselves, having been sourced from animal shelters around the country," he said.

There are 11 operational USAR dogs in New Zealand, nine of which are local to Christchurch.

[mita]

Lovely pic of a hard-working dog on that website link. Thanks!

[rebelsquest]

thanks for sharing