Search dog teams test readiness for international disaster missions

Search dog teams are being tested for international disaster deployments at a large-scale exercise in Lower Austria, ORF reported.

The International Rescue Dog Organisation’s Mission Readiness Test is assessing 32 teams. The exercise runs from November 4 to 8 at the Tritolwerk disaster relief training ground in Eggendorf, in the Wiener Neustadt district. Participants have come from nine countries, including the United States, Italy, the Netherlands, Bulgaria and Croatia.

The teams are working through a scenario in which a magnitude 7.4 earthquake has devastated the training ground and left people missing. At nine stations, the dogs must locate human scent among rubble, including beneath debris several metres high. Eight searches take place during the day and one at night. Teams have 20 minutes for each search and are not told how many people are missing at each location.

When search dog Mia barks during a rubble search, her handler, Johannes Mann, knows she has detected a strong human scent nearby. Harald Winkler of the organisation said an ideal search dog needs a strong drive to search and to indicate when it finds someone, as well as a reliable temperament and a friendly nature toward people and animals.

The exercise also tests how teams cope with the conditions of a real deployment. Handlers and dogs rest between searches and sleep in tents. Rubble, sharp objects, noise and long working hours can put both under strain, so handlers are also expected to know basic animal first aid.

Veterinarian Ulrike Winter, who has supported several international disaster operations, is advising participants on how to respond to cuts, eye and ear problems, injuries affecting movement and fractures. Mann and Mia still have stations to complete before they can earn certification for international disaster deployments.