VIDEO: Bobcat Company Partners With Tough Dogs, People Who Train Them
Tue March 05, 2024 - National Edition Bobcat
When the opportunity to partner with the National Disaster Search Dog Foundation (SDF) presented itself in 2021, it was a no-brainer for Bobcat Company.
Why not support a nonprofit organization that is committed to rescuing man's best friend and developing them into life-saving resources? After all, Bobcat knows a thing or two about tough animals.
"Partnering with the National Disaster Search Dog Foundation was such a natural partnership for us at Bobcat. We've long supported recovery efforts with our equipment following natural disasters, so this partnership serves as an extension of our work to accomplish similar goals," said Laura Ness Owens, vice president of global brand and North American marketing at Doosan Bobcat.
"The Search Dog Foundation empowers lifesaving work that truly matters to all of us."
There are currently 94 SDF-trained Canine Disaster Search Teams across the United States, including California, Florida, Nebraska, New York, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Texas, Utah and Virginia. Due to agreements between counties, cities and states, these skilled canine teams can be deployed regionally and nationally to make sure that when disaster strikes, no one is left behind.
By accompanying firefighters and other first responders, dogs become a precious, life-saving resource that can search quickly and safely in areas where their human counterparts cannot.
From Rescued to Rescuer
SDF recruits dogs from around the country that are rescued from abuse or abandonment. It's not uncommon for these dogs to be high energy, tenacious and bold — making them ideal for search and rescue situations but not ideal for a family environment.
Upon completion of screening and testing criteria, the dogs are trained to channel that high energy and drive into life-saving skills.
Since 1996, SDF has trained more than 200 certified first responder and canine teams that have deployed to 246 disasters and missing person searches around the globe. For more than 25 years, SDF and its dog handlers have worked to save lives during Hurricanes Katrina, Harvey and Irma; California mudslides; the World Trade Center attacks; the Oklahoma City bombing; and earthquakes in Nepal, Haiti and Japan.
To ensure that canine teams are prepared for those real-life situations, several months of training and simulation are required.
Training, Simulation, and How Bobcat Plays a Role
When dogs are ready, they receive 8 to 10 months of professional training before joining a handler team. By design, this means dogs come to handlers already trained to basic certification level — reducing the time it takes for the handler/dog search team to attain FEMA Advanced Certification from two or more years to just 8 to 12 months.
Photo courtesy of Bobcat
At SDF's National Training Center, dogs must learn to crawl through tunnels, maneuver on ladders, navigate unstable surfaces and detect human scent beneath debris. After a disaster, when buildings have crumbled to the ground, the dogs are trained to search quickly and safely in areas that first responders cannot access.
Creating simulations for these intense training sessions is essential, and the SDF maintenance team received enough donations to purchase a Bobcat T750 compact track loader to perform facility maintenance tasks like brush clearing, gravel road maintenance and perhaps most importantly: keeping the disaster simulation sites safe and challenging for dogs.
Photo courtesy of Bobcat
The Bobcat T750 can move rubble and create a stimulating opportunity for each dog on a mock rescue mission. If the courses aren't occasionally rearranged, the dogs can remember the area where the volunteer victims previously hid.
"We're making our props dynamic, constantly evolving courses," said Denise Sanders, senior director of communications and search team operations at SDF. "We're training the next generation of search teams so that they are prepared before they step off a plane or a bus at the next disaster site. Our hope is to give them that training ahead of time so that somewhere in their toolbox, they have a resource they can pull from when they really need it. Bobcat equipment helps us build our training center even more and create that dynamic training experience we need."
Through its partnership with Bobcat, SDF has expanded its equipment fleet to include an E35 compact excavator and a variety of Bobcat attachments to accommodate several projects on campus. They use attachments for clearing and new development, along with cleaning up downed trees after storms and any other project that requires a powerful, agile machine.
"Bobcat's support is helping our teams reach the highest skill levels needed for certification and maintain deployment readiness," Sanders said.
Supporting Tough Animals Who Make a Difference
The National Disaster Search Dog Foundation was founded by Wilma Melville, a retired schoolteacher who was deployed to the Oklahoma City bombing in 1995 with her FEMA-certified search dog, Murphy. Once home, she was determined to do something about America's severe shortage of canine disaster search teams and created the nonprofit to address it. Since then, SDF has recruited, trained and deployed hundreds of rescued dogs that are committed to uniting victims with their families.
One might say it takes a tough animal to know a tough animal, which explains why Bobcat is so supportive of the SDF mission.
"Bobcat is honored to support these heroic first responders who act with courage, determination and toughness," said Ness Owens. "Their work aligns with our mission of empowering people to accomplish more."
Photo courtesy of Bobcat
SDF Facilities Manager Jim Wiggins and one of the dogs in the program.
