Search And Rescue Quotes

“Beauty is not who you are on the outside, it is the wisdom and time you gave away to save another struggling soul like you.”
― Shannon L. Alder

“Anyone can have a friend, but the one that would walk in a storm to find you is all you will ever need.”
― Shannon L. Alder

“I never wanted to be a God fearing person. I wanted to grow up and be a person that was fearless for God. There was a difference.”
― Shannon L. Alder

“Always do good for others because when people try to drag your name through the mud, God will always bring a storm to wash it away.”
― Shannon L. Alder

“We were meant to rescue each other, not cut down the forest to rescue one.”
― shannon l. alder

“I doubt we we'll find anything," he told Jason, though he was watching O'Dell's reaction out of the corner of his eye. "but you can never let the dog know. She takes her leads from her handler." Even as he said this, Grace looked back at him.
"As far as she's concerned," he continued in a casual tone, purposely not using her name, " I need to relay that I'm just as excited as she is. And that this search is going to be more interesting that piss on a fence post.”
― Alex Kava, Breaking Creed

“When your daily mission involves scouring destruction trying to find anybody alive, a friendly snout and a soul who will do nothing but sit by your side is more powerful than any medicine. The dogs provided hope and a return to normalcy.”
― Wilma Melville, Hero Dogs: How a Pack of Rescues, Rejects, and Strays Became America's Greatest Disaster-Search Partners

“I'm an All-Point Bulletin
--alerting and alarming--
Both sides of town line.”
― Leslie Connor, Dead on Town Line

“Hi. My name is Sue. Have some Gu, Let me put this under you.

IF you ask anyone who has ever taken a wilderness medicine course from me, this is how they remember me. This is what we say to someone we find injured or lost in the backcountry. Introduce yourself, add sugars and insulation to the patient.”
― Susan Purvis, Go Find: My Journey to Find the Lost—and Myself

“The victim was last seen in the spillway from Lake Charleston into the Embarras River, which is in Coles County, Illinois. Four wrestling team members decided to slide down the spillway during a flood. Two drowned. One body washed out of the spillway the following day.”
― Susan Bulanda, Ready to Serve, Ready to Save: Strategies of Real-Life Search and Rescue Missions

“If you’re not sure if the dog has something or not, don’t ask it if it has anything. You may talk the dog into an alert. Let the dog make up its own mind.

Leave the area of greatest interest, search other areas or take a break, then bring the dog back in. Try to approach from another direction. Observe what your dog does without cueing from you; sometimes the dog will have no further interest in the area. – Marcia Koenig”
― Susan Bulanda, Ready to Serve, Ready to Save: Strategies of Real-Life Search and Rescue Missions

“When my dog picked up scent he immediately left the main wash and took off up one of the 40’ ravine walls to head cross country. He had been working just ahead of us as we went northerly up the wash. He was not ranging any distance at all before he got scent. When my partner and I followed him and got to the top of the ridge, my dog was already at the bottom of the ravine and starting to climb up the next ridge. He paused to look back and see we were coming and then disappeared out of sight over the next ridge as we were working our way down. He repeated his behavior as we negotiated at least three ravines and ridges in this fashion. When he came again to the main wash he waited only long enough to make eye contact again before entering the narrow slot canyon where the subject was found.” – Susan Williams”
― Susan Bulanda, Ready to Serve, Ready to Save: Strategies of Real-Life Search and Rescue Missions

“What are your feelings about the mission?
“I was elated because this was Gus’ first live find and I feel the victim would have died if we didn’t find him. All of our training paid off. I’d always have believed that I’d be so proud because we (Gus and I) made the find and saved a life. What happened was just the opposite. I was humbled because I realized that we were just a tool. If it hadn’t been for the work of all of the other people on the search, we wouldn’t have been successful. If it hadn’t been for the deputy’s ongoing investigation and canvassing the neighborhood, they wouldn’t have found the neighbor who pointed us in the direction where the victim was found. I realized on that search that we, as the dog/handler team, don’t “walk on water,” everyone is important. A search is a team effort by everyone involved in the search. – David Hancock”
― Susan Bulanda, Ready to Serve, Ready to Save: Strategies of Real-Life Search and Rescue Missions

“When I initially heard a description of the search area and the scenario, I was certain this would be a wasted effort. I suspected there was very little we could do, given the huge size of the search area, rough terrain, terrible weather, age of the track (around 52 hours old), and the lack of resources. Clearly, I was wrong. I underestimated the ability of a trained SAR dog. – Deb Tirmenstein”
― Susan Bulanda, Ready to Serve, Ready to Save: Strategies of Real-Life Search and Rescue Missions

“When searching for a victim that is out of sight, such as under rubble, water, or in darkness, the handler wants an indication from the dog that is unmistakable, or “bombproof.” However, occasionally you’ll be on a search where even the best trained dog will do the bombproof alert. This is where close observation of your dog’s body language can help you solve the problem. – Marcia Koenig”
― Susan Bulanda, Ready to Serve, Ready to Save: Strategies of Real-Life Search and Rescue Missions

“What qualities are essentials for this type of dog? It takes focus, endurance, an ability to scent discriminate, and, some would say excessive drive. For me, Black Labs of working/field trail lines have proven to be very capable in this role. However, I know that many breeds of dogs would work just as well. It takes a dog that is tireless, with a boundless desire to please. The dog must be tough enough for the weather and terrain and just dumb enough to want to do this more than anything else in the world. – Deb Tirmenstein”
― Susan Bulanda, Ready to Serve, Ready to Save: Strategies of Real-Life Search and Rescue Missions

“For her trained response, I naively let Keb pick a behavior that seemed to come naturally for her: a “jump alert.” To my enduring dismay, this evolved into a full-on body slam, as Keb started her jump five feet from me and would impact my body as a small furry missile.”
― Suzanne Elshult, A Dog's Devotion: True Adventures of a K9 Search and Rescue Team

“One of the secrets of search and rescue is this: when we are searching for the lost, when we are rescuing the injured, usually we’re having a pretty good time. We’re out with SAR friends; we’re having an adventure; we’re trying to save the world (or at least a small part of it). And yet, at the same time, we reflect that every mission may be a life-changing tragedy for families left behind.”
― Suzanne Elshult, A Dog's Devotion: True Adventures of a K9 Search and Rescue Team

“Of those involved in the months-long Oso Disaster Search, I often think of the many that we did not see. We didn’t see the civilian volunteers who built the urgently needed bypass road on the south side of the slide. We didn’t see the FEMA staff who set up tents and provided incident command logistics. We didn’t see the community members who cooked and emptied their shelves to deliver shovels, gloves, and flashlights to the Darrington and Oso fire stations. We didn’t see the medical examiner’s staff who worked so hard to identify victims. We didn’t see the helicopter support crews who provided gas, service, and maintenance to keep them flying. We didn’t see the girl scout troop who prepared and delivered baskets of treats and toys for the dogs.”
― Suzanne Elshult, A Dog's Devotion: True Adventures of a K9 Search and Rescue Team

“Political resistance” is a phrase encompassing two concepts that are unfortunately common in the K9 world: “My dog is better than your dog,” and “My K9 training method is the only training method in the known universe that works.” If these concepts seem childish to you, well, you’re not alone.”
― Suzanne Elshult, A Dog's Devotion: True Adventures of a K9 Search and Rescue Team

“Lassie! Go find Timmy!” Many people think search dogs are motivated by a heart-warming, tear-inspired desire to save lost humans. That is not quite true. Most search dogs are motivated by a desire to play with their Most Favorite Toy in the World, the magic toy that only appears after they have led their handler to a lost person. This is the Search Game taught to search dogs throughout the world and responsible for saving hundreds of lives every year. While search dogs are always happy to find a new human (and practice what some of our volunteer hiders call the Rescue Face Lick), most are driven by play the Search Game for the Most Favorite Toy in the World.”
― Suzanne Elshult, A Dog's Devotion: True Adventures of a K9 Search and Rescue Team

“For mountain rescue operations such as the search for Edwin, we’ll carry twenty-four-hour mission packs, heavy with gear, clothing layers, food, and emergency equipment we may need should we be forced to bivouac overnight high on the mountains. We’ll also carry with us the unseen, the training, successes – and fears 0 from our past experiences in the wilderness.”
― Suzanne Elshult, A Dog's Devotion: True Adventures of a K9 Search and Rescue Team

“I vividly remember the intense coaxing it took me and my first search dog, Bosse, to get a little dog named Shotgun to leave his owner who had died falling off a cliff in a remote part of the Cascade mountains. Shotgun had been sitting for days by his dead master in the snow. Starved and exceedingly cold, he refused to leave his owner until the presence of another dog finally persuaded him to return with us, and to a tearful reunion with the victim’s wife. For her, Shotgun was the last bit of living connection with her husband, and I remember her grateful tears that the little dog had been rescued.”
― Suzanne Elshult, A Dog's Devotion: True Adventures of a K9 Search and Rescue Team

“Mystery is the most powerful demon we face. What happened? We don’t know. What decisions did she make? We don’t know. What route did she take? We don’t know. Where is she now? We don’t know.”
― Suzanne Elshult, A Dog's Devotion: True Adventures of a K9 Search and Rescue Team

“I take out my Professional K9 Scent Detection Device (a jar of soap bubbles from Toys R Us) and determine what direction the wind is coming from by watching where my bubbles go.”
― Suzanne Elshult, A Dog's Devotion: True Adventures of a K9 Search and Rescue Team

“Over time, I came to realize that proofing your dog to not to alert on any odor, animal remains, or bones that are nonhuman is essential. What should I proof my dog on? Live animals, dead animals, animal bones, dead fish, people, garbage, glass jars, gloves, plastic, fresh food, rotten food, excrement, and the list goes on.”
― Suzanne Elshult, A Dog's Devotion: True Adventures of a K9 Search and Rescue Team

“Runaways are the foundation for what air scent dogs do – it’s a chain of behavior we start with puppies from day one. In short, the handler holds the dog while another person runs away and hides a short distance away. The dog is released with a “go find” command, locates the subject, returns to the handler, and does a trained final response (TFR) such as a bark, jump, or tug to communicate that he has found a subject. “Show me!” shouts the handler, who then sprints after the dog, who has already whirled and is now dashing madly back to the lost person. Upon arrival, the dog’s favorite toy magically appears, a big party ensues, and the handler and training subject yip and yell to excite and reward the K9.”
― Suzanne Elshult, A Dog's Devotion: True Adventures of a K9 Search and Rescue Team

“Five little rich tourists sink in a sub,
Wallets open without limit on a search-n-rescue op.
A 1000 migrants die each year tryna cross the sea,
Borders tighten in sheer fear with no show of mercy.”
― Abhijit Naskar, Visvavictor: Kanima Akiyor Kainat

“Introduction day was always fun to observe. Sometimes the connection between a dog and a handier was instantaneous.. When that happened, it was almost like watching two cartoon characters fall in love. While nobody’s eyes changed to red hearts and big clouds of love didn’t magically appear around them, the connection was so obvious, they should have. And even when the bond was a little slower to form, you could usually tell if there was something there.”
― Jane B. Mason, Ember