2015-06-15 Vol 9 No 6 - National Search Dog Alliance

SAR Dog News
June 2015
Published by the National Search Dog Alliance
Vol. 9, No. 6
The Voice of K-9 Search and Rescue @ n-sda.org
Founding members: K-9 Thor, Eileen M. Nobles, Susan Bulanda, K-9 Roo, Leslie Godchaux, Brian R. Hendrickson,
Continental Kennel Club, Inc., K-9 River, K-9 Persha, Jan Thompson, K-9 Cali, Peggy Ann Buchman, K-9 Geist
CONTENTS
Article
2015 BOD Meeting Dates
Hero Dog Contest
New NSDA Officers elected
Message from the President
Thank You
Teams Pass NSDA Tests in 3 states
New Ramapo Training Center
Utah Passes HRD Law
Is Your Team Training in a Rut?
Tips for Planning Your Trainings
PODCAST and Prizes on the 15th
Happy Birthday (K-9 SAR story)
New Products
Wanted – TICKS !
Gun Source Residue standard
Texas Flood Conditions
Nepal Earthquake SAR team
Upcoming NSDA & Other Agency Tests
Kibbles and Bits
Last Howl
Board of Directors
Training, Seminars & Conferences
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American Humane
Association
HERO DOG CONTEST
June 26: last day to vote for finals
2015 BOARD MEETING DATES
July 2
August 6
September 3
Contact Secretary, Julie Gibson ([email protected]) for the
call in number for the meetings.
Bucky says
Some days you’re the
Dog. Some days
you’re the hydrant.
Three finalists in the K-9 Search and Rescue
category have been chosen. They will enter
another round of voting which started on May
26 to determine the finalist for the category.
A prize of $2,500 will be given to NSDA if our
NSDA partner is the finalist in the Search and
Rescue category. The handler will then go on
to the grand finals in Los Angeles.
Choose your most outstanding candidate and
vote daily. See Page 2 to see Glory, our
NSDA contender.
Go to: www.herodogawards.org to vote.
Select the category: “Search and Rescue”.
SAR Dog News, June 2015
Page 2
Goldie alive under crates in an outdoor
factory." Karin
Thank You for your Stories
and your Efforts
NSDA would like to thank the other entries of
NSDA partners. They were both very credible
and they deserve our recognition also.
Glory is an eight year old Bloodhound who
has been trained and certified to track lost
pets. During her long and successful career,
she has helped bring closure to hundreds of
families. Glory works in extreme temperatures
and under difficult conditions and is devoted
to her work.
"We were terrified," says Stephanie, the
owner of a lost cat, Pistol. "Pistol was gone
from our front yard and we had no idea where
to look. When Glory led to the freeway and
wanted to cross, I couldn't believe it. But
Glory was right, as we had Pistol back that
same afternoon—
Pistol had crossed the 101 freeway and was
right across from where Glory indicated."
Caymus
Paisley, Yorkshire terrier mix lost three days.
"How does one even put words to an
experience of knowing we may never have
seen Paisley again? Without your fierce help
and Glory's devotion to her work, we wouldn't
be sitting here with Paisley tonight." Derek
Goldie, the Pomeranian. "When I received the
devastating news Goldie was missing, I spent
six nights walking through the area
and calling into a megaphone, put up 300
posters and offered a $1,000 reward.
Goldie was lost 60 miles away with no food or
water--it was more than my family could bear.
Our hearts were broken. On day eight, Landa
arrived with Glory working 24 hours a day in
the rain. At nine days missing Glory found
Ferdinand
SAR Dog News, June 2015
New NSDA Officers Elected
at June Quarterly Meeting
Susan Fleming is the new President of NSDA.
Susan is from Pennsylvania and has served
as Evaluator Chair and previously as
Membership Chair.
Terry Crooks will be Vice President, a position
he held last year. Terry is from Montana.
Sherry Scruggs will continue on as Treasurer.
Sherry hails from Georgia.
Julie Gibson is NSDA’s Secretary again this
year. Julie is an Idaho resident.
Heather Proper VanValkenberg joins the
Board this year after serving on the Testing
Committee. Heather is from Pennsylvania.
Message from new NSDA
President, Susan Fleming
I have served on the
NSDA
Board
of
Directors for several
years
and
have
witnessed
many
changes in the time I
have served. We have
increased our Team
Membership;
added
more
discipline
standards; continue to
increase the number of
Evaluators for NSDA;
gained membership in
states where we didn’t
have members; increased the number of sites
for testing; and added trainings and testing
from other organizations as opportunities for
our membership.
Our membership is
increasing as we listen to what search and
rescue volunteers and law enforcement
request. It is amazing to me that all of the
Alliance officers, Board members and
Page 3
Committee Chairs are volunteers and give so
generously of their free time to serve NSDA.
As we grow as an organization, more
volunteer opportunities arise. Sometimes, it
may be a “once and done” job. Sometimes, it
may be a much needed ongoing process job.
Volunteers are busy people and as life
changes for some of our volunteers, we lose
them as they move on. I may need your help
some day and give you a call. If you can’t
help, maybe you can suggest a person who
would be interested.
One thing that makes NSDA different from
many organizations is the fact that we are
responsive. If you send an email, or make a
phone call, it will be answered in a timely
manner. Our organization is “on a roll”. Let’s
keep it that way!
A Hugh NSDA “Thank you”
to Norma Snelling, Jan Meyer, and
Gloria Howard!
By Susan Fleming
On behalf of NSDA, I would like to thank
Norma, Jan and Gloria for all their
contributions to the organization.
Thanks to Norma, NSDA is moving forward.
We would not be where we are if Norma
hadn’t stepped up and taken over as
President.
She worked many hours on
everything from presidential responsibilities to
editing standards, newsletters and everything
else that had to be done. Well done, Norma,
for all your commitment and dedication!
Jan Meyer is stepping down from the Board
and has spent a tremendous amount of time
helping NSDA. She has chaired numerous
seminars, conducted more canine evaluations
last year than any other Evaluator and has
kept the Board on its toes with standards.
Well done, Jan, for all your efforts!
SAR Dog News, June 2015
Gloria Howard has finished her term but will
continue to help with the Alliance Depot. She
has been very helpful to the Board with
decision-making and will be missed. We are
so happy she is continuing to handle the
Alliance Depot.
The NSDA Board appreciates and values all
of you and wishes you the best!
Page 4
THREE TEAMS PASS NSDA’S LAND
HRD IN SARASOTA, FLORIDA
Janet Wyatt and partner, Raine.
Janet hosted this event in Sarasota and did
an excellent job.
Denise Wegesend Conrad
& partner, Don
TWO TEAMS PASS IN MONTANA
Tom Ostercamp & Stormy
Trailing I
Cheryl Del Pozzo Gallagher & Niko
Terry Crooks & Beacon
Area Search with Live & Cadaver Source
SAR Dog News, June 2015
A dream come true!
Page 5
Melissa White and Cole pass
Trailing III in Pennsylvania
Ramapo's new home and the site of the Ramapo
Rescue Dog Foundation Canine Training Center.
A 188 acre equestrian estate located in the
Town of Hamptonburgh, just 63 miles north of
Manhattan, with two barns, an indoor riding
arena, rolling fields, woods and 2 ponds has
become the new home for Ramapo Rescue
Dog Association.
The site will provide training opportunities for
civilian canine search and rescue teams and
for those involved in Homeland Security --law enforcement, military and disaster search
teams, both state and federal.
The Foundation was formed with an
endowment given to RRDA by the Estate of
Ronald S. Kane and Solomon G. Grossman.
Ramapo Rescue Dog Association
www.ramaporescuedog.org
Seen with subject Kevin Fleming
Utah HRD law H.B. 173
Recovery Dog Training
Amendments
This bill: allows the medical examiner to retain
tissue from an unclaimed body in order to
donate the tissue to an individual for the
purpose of training a dog to search for human
remains. The bill was signed by the Governor
March 2, 2015. See full details at:
http://le.utah.gov/~2015/bills/static/HB0173.ht
ml
Along the road:
“But Officer, I only had one, in dog years.”
SAR Dog News, June 2015
IS YOUR TEAM IN A RUT?
By Norma Snelling
Are you getting bored with SAR? Many small
teams start out with wonderful intentions and
lots of enthusiasm. They investigate places
to train, things to do, new projects to excite
the handlers and dogs. Then they add a
couple of more people and have to start
planning. Then they add a couple more
people and they have to have schedules.
Then they add a couple more people and
there becomes confusion. Then someone
takes charge and sometimes becomes a
dictator.
people present, traffic
equipment working.
Page 6
distractions or
Trailing teams need
fences and streams,
concrete,
brick
and
pavement, blackberries
and swamps.
They
need to cross roads and
streams and go through
playgrounds.
Area and Trailing teams
need to search for men,
women, children and
different races. They should be standing,
walking, hiding, talking on a cell phone.
The answer many times is, “Let’s choose one
or two places to meet every week so
everyone knows where to go on Saturday and
Thursday.” Sounds great.
How is your training program working out.
What, you don’t have a training program? No
timelines? No objectives? Well, just keep
showing up on Saturday and Thursday.
Then you realize that if everyone shows up,
you have eight handlers, three hours to train
and oops, you ran out of time. Everyone can
only have a twenty minute problem because
everyone expects a problem every time they
take the effort to show up. Right?
These are compiled from actual complaints
heard over many years in many states. You
are not alone. If you have solved these
problems, please share with the rest of our
readers. Helping each other is why NSDA
was formed. [email protected]
Wrong. It might work for beginners but as the
dog teams advance, you need more
experiences and more time.
Area teams need new subjects. The dog has
already learned all of the standard hiding
places. He is BORED! He also needs to
learn to search when you are not within view.
What would you do
on a 50 – 75 acre
search? Can you
navigate and grid
search?
HRD teams need
vehicles
and
buildings, forests and open fields, trash and
animal remains. They need to search with
TIPS FOR PLANNING
TRAININGS
By Sue Wolff
When driving around, always be on the
lookout for possible training sites.
Ask
friends, family and team members if they
know of sites that could be used. Be specific
as to what is needed i.e. acreage if doing
area or trailing, fields, trees, flat or hilly, etc.
Remember to also think outside the box.
Abandoned, but safe, construction sites
(commercial or residential) work well for
training too.
SAR Dog News, June 2015
Page 7
subject. That way the assistant trainer is not
deprived of their training time and the newbie
is kept busy.
Ask team members to bring friends to be new
subjects for the dog. Boy Scout Troops and
Civil Air Patrol cadets make good subjects.
Both organizations sponsor training in SAR
and working with a K-9 team would help them
as well.
No matter who you use for subjects, be sure
to tell them the time commitment that they are
making. If they can only devote three hours,
check with the training officer if this is enough
time. If an all day search is planned, this
person would not be a help on that day.
Conversely if you need someone for all day,
don’t tell them that they will only be needed
for “a couple of hours”. They will get antsy,
become mad at you (and the team) and never
come back.
Subjects also need to be informed on how to
dress, what to bring with them and/or what
will be provided by the Team i.e. water, food,
camouflage, etc.
The Trainer and assistants as well as
subjects must get to training at least an hour
before the rest of the team. This will allow for
set up time so that handlers and K-9s will not
know where the subjects are hidden or where
the track was laid.
Have more than one thing going on at a time.
Get an experienced handler to work with the
newbies in one area while more experienced
handlers and K-9s are searching in another.
Be specific with the assistant trainer as to
what to work on with the newbie and allocate
a specific time frame for them to accomplish
this. Then have them report back to the head
trainer and let the experienced handler go out
on a search. The newbie can either crew for
this handler or another one or even be a
Plan a scenario in which all team members
can participate. Use a search you’ve been on
or invent one i.e. glider lands in a tree; pilot is
thrown out and presumed dead. Use certified
handlers as lead K-9 teams and have
additional handlers crew as radio operator
and medic. Other personnel
can man the base and conduct
radio operations.
Train in all kinds of weather.
After all, searches don’t always
happen on sunny days in 70°
weather.
Train at night—in the woods if that’s where
you would normally have a search or in town.
Both scenarios will benefit the handler and
the dog.
Each can find out what their
strengths and deficiencies are under these
circumstances.
Train at different times of the day. Scent acts
differently depending on the temperature.
Work negative areas. Nine times out of ten
on a search the area to which you are
assigned will have nothing in it.
Put distractions in
search areas i.e.
steak bones, fast
food wrappers, food,
animal remains, etc.
Try to get a salvage yard in which to train.
This way the trainer doesn’t have to worry if
the dog inadvertently puts scratches on a car
or residuals are left in a vehicle.
The biggest asset to effective training is
imagination. Use yours!
SAR Dog News, June 2015
June PODCAST & Prizes
The June 2015 Search Dog PODCAST
features an interview with Steve Hinch, author
of Outdoor Navigation with GPS. Listen to
the show to understand more about how your
GPS receiver works and for some practical
tips.
Find the show at http://sardoc.podbean.com
and on iTunes.
The PODCAST now has a Facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/searchdogpodcast
Please like us and share.
Last month two winners were chosen at
random to win a collar from Glowdoggie.com.
The winners are Susan Brogan and Anne
Beamish. This month Teddy the Dog will has
donated some fun gear to be given to one
listener. www.teddythedog.com
HAPPY BIRTHDAY
By Chelsea Usher
For most people, the twentieth birthday is
fairly uneventful. It isn’t a milestone birthday,
but you can usually weasel a meal and some
cake out of it. If nothing else, it’s a great
excuse to hang out with friends. My twentieth
birthday this past July was no different;
unless of course you count spending multiple
hours searching a compost facility for a body
different.
We drove up to the Sevier County Solid
Waste Compost Plant and were met by a
police officer with a clipboard.
At the
moment, the plant was a crime scene, which
meant she had to record exactly who came
and went.
We’re with the Search and Rescue team.
Page 8
Names? In typical fashion, Roy decided to
be sarcastic.
Roy Ferguson, Suzie Ferguson, Chelsea
Usher, Schatzie, and Apache.
The officer stopped writing and shot a
quizzical glace at Roy.
Well, you wanted everybody, right? I mean,
they are the brains of the operation.
The officer was only slightly amused.
Drive on through. The other guy is parked
right over there. She pointed to a silver
SUV.
We parked in a partially shaded loading dock.
To our right, I could see through an open
doorway into a large warehouse. The sign
had clearly said “compost,” but this wasn’t
your grandmother’s kitchen scraps. Mounds
of what I considered pure garbage were piled
twenty feet high. Of the 375 tons of garbage
the plant received daily, anything organic was
directed towards the composting section.
Soon, they would be pushed into the open
composting tubes in the floor behind them. I
opened the door and stepped out. I thought
back to my grandfather’s stories. A hundred
degrees in the shade, he’d say. I hadn’t
believed that was possible until now. It
wasn’t yet noon, but according to the radio, it
was already over 100 degrees.
The sickening stench of the plant hung in the
air. It was like sticking your face into a
garbage can that hadn’t been emptied in two
weeks. I looked down and thought back to a
project in elementary school when we used
lint to make paper. The ground appeared to
be covered in an art project gone wrong,
albeit a very odiferous art project. I pushed at
a pile of the grey gunk with my shoe
wondering how so many different items all
came out looking the same.
SAR Dog News, June 2015
To my left, the warehouse continued for
several hundred feet. Separated from the
main warehouse by a small road, a smaller
warehouse stood in the distance. Apache
jumped out of the truck, nearly knocking me
over.
The
excited
German
shepherd
anxiously
looked from back and
forth from the warehouse
to Roy. He was ready to
work. His nose surveyed
the air, bringing a myriad
of repulsive and yet
exciting odors.
Roy
slipped
the
orange
harness over his head, the bright orange in
stark contrast to his dark amber and black
markings.
As I stepped away from the door, Schatzie
daintily leapt out of the truck. Lighter in color
and smaller in size, Schatzie’s slender frame
makes her easily distinguishable from
Apache. A few sniffs later, her ears were
back towards her skull. Clearly, the stench
was far beneath the older, wiser shepherd.
Suzie, look! Look at her ears! Roy began to
giggle. Though probably a hair over six feet
and sixty, he often giggles like a child. When
he smiles, it reaches ear to ear and she
slinked forward. If looks could kill, Roy would
have been cold before he hit the ground.
Page 9
and where he hoped Roy and Suzie would
search. Somewhere in the middle of his
speech, as I took in my surroundings, I
wondered how on Earth I’d ended up at a
compost facility, looking for a body.
That morning had begun the same as the
morning before with a wake-up call from the
80 pound, not quite 2-year-old Apache.
When I heard the door to my room creak
open, I pretended to be soundly asleep. That
only prompted him to jump onto the bed and
sit on me. Fortunately for him, the innocence
in his expression coupled with big brown eyes
and a strategically timed head tilt kept him out
of trouble.
It was my twentieth birthday. Not a milestone
by any means, but I was looking forward to
another relaxing day visiting with Roy and
Suzie. Residents of Sevierville, Tennessee,
the Fergusons had been instrumental in my
senior project, a children’s book about puppy
raising for Leader Dogs for the Blind. We’d
become good friends, and every summer
since
then,
I’d
jumped
the
North
Carolina/Tennessee border to spend a
weekend with them and participate in Search
and Rescue training. By participate, I mean
they’d hand me a walkie-talkie, point me
towards the woods and say “get lost.” I was a
pro.
Suzie, though laughing, attempted to console
the distressed shepherd and fastened the
harness around Schatzie’s chest. Ordinarily
the more serious of the two, though still fun
loving, Suzie has an air of independence
about her. Her brown wavy, shoulder length
hair was pulled back and she, like Roy, was
decked out in search and rescue gear: black
While these dogs can be trained to find the
living on land, they can also be certified to
find the dead on land or in water. The smell
produced by human remains is distinct, and
with an olfactory center several times the size
of our own, dogs are able to pick out this
scent from something as small as a drop of
blood. Even if a body has been buried in a
forest for a decade, the dogs can still pick up
the smell in the leaves of the trees which
have been feeding off of the nutrients within
the remains.
Halfway to the silver SUV, we were met by
their team member, Brian, and his shepherd
Lexi. He began to explain his search pattern
Suzie and I were at the grocery store that
morning picking out a birthday cake when
SAR Dog News, June 2015
Roy called. A man had gone missing from his
workplace, the compost facility, on Friday.
They now suspected he’d fallen into one of
the composting tubes and hoped the dogs
could confirm or deny their suspicions.
According to the police, the man, a fifty-four
year old white male, was last seen in the
break room, so we grabbed a few water
bottles and headed across the lot. The break
room was actually inside the
smaller
warehouse
which
housed recyclable cardboard.
Even the cardboard reeked.
Mountains of stained and
ripped cardboard covered the
cement floor.
Let’s start in the break room.
Roy handed me Apache’s leash. You wait
out here with him. Their teammate Brian also
handed me his dog’s leash and the three of
them stepped into the break room. Apache,
Lexi, and I stood outside the door of the
warehouse sweating in the sun, batting away
flies.
Only one dog can work at a time. They’re
likely to distract each other and it keeps them
from cheating off each other. Cadaver dogs
only want one thing: their reward. If they
don’t find a body, they don’t get their reward.
Page 10
search an area no bigger than a dorm room
with a cadaver dog. Clearly, if the body were
there, it would have been more than
apparent. But Schatzie hadn’t been sent to
look for a body; she was looking for bodily
fluids, or trace evidence. Had our missing
man been the victim of foul play and had he
been struck with an object in this room, the
dogs would have found it.
I amused myself by examining every inch of
the room, pretending to look for clues. The
man’s hard hat still sat on the table, yellow
and dented. A bulletin board hung on one
wall. It was covered with announcements
about payroll changes and shift policies.
The concrete floor was cracked and a single
file line of ants ran from one wall to a Cheeto
left on the floor. Apache lay watching the
ants, occasionally sniffing with too much
force, disrupting the line and sending the little
ants rolling. Lexi had situated herself on the
other side of the room by the water cooler.
The door opened. Schatzie trotted in and
Roy stuck his head in the door. Apache,
come. The shepherd jumped to his feet.
Find something?
Maybe. Schatzie alerted twice so we’ll see
what he does.
The door shut.
Ergo, if Apache were to see Schatzie alert in
the break room, he might be tempted to follow
suit in order to get the coveted towel tug-toy.
Suzie emerged from the break room, followed
by the men.
Several minutes later, the process was
repeated. Apache was returned and Lexi was
taken into the warehouse. When the group
returned, they had more questions than
answers.
Nothing. You can sit with those two in the
break room in the air conditioning and we’ll
search the rest of the warehouse.
Well, they all hit on the same pile of
cardboard, but when we got someone to
move it, there wasn’t anything there.
I called the dogs and we all piled into the
small, dank break room. To the casual
observer, it may have seemed absurd to
Roy sat down across from me, face dripping
with sweat.
SAR Dog News, June 2015
There’s no way of knowing what they
smell. Some guy could have had a nose
bleed as he was stacking the cardboard, or
if that guy got chopped up in the machine
and spit out the other side, some rat could
have brought a bone from his finger into
the warehouse.
Page 11
again. I looked down at my red GardnerWebb Dawg Pound t-shirt. I didn’t look like I
belonged with the K-9 unit.
Were they
wondering why this college kid had invaded
this matter that was so personal to them? I
couldn’t imagine what they were going
through, or how hard it must have been for
them to watch us walk across the lot.
That’s lovely. I cringed.
Over the next few minutes, while everyone
recuperated from the heat, we came up with a
variety of possibilities worthy of CSI.
What if he was messing around with some
guy’s wife and they got into it in here. He
could have hit him, stashed the body out in
the warehouse and then gotten rid of it
after hours!
Suzie was convinced
someone had done him in.
Nah, he probably just ran away with a
mistress and didn’t want to fess up so he
just went missing, Roy piped in, chuckling.
I breathed a sigh of relief as we reached the
far warehouse, mostly out of sight of the
grieving family. I realized then why only ten
minutes before, we’d been joking about the
situation:
we were coping.
To work
objectively, we couldn’t admit that we were
there because Bobby Reagan was presumed
dead. Ordinarily, the team works in remote
areas and sees little of the victim’s family.
This time, it was different.
As we stood by the door to the warehouse,
we formulated a new plan. Brian would go
behind the building and work the surrounding
area while Roy and Suzie would work inside.
Though we were all laughing, I couldn’t help
wondering why. The latter was the best case
scenario; all the others had him dead by foul
play. In the end, we agreed the police
probably had it right to begin with: an ill-timed
heart attack, which sent him tumbling into the
tube.
When everyone had rehydrated, we decided
to walk back to the main building. We were
laughing as we turned the corner into the
main lot, but then we saw them.
That’s his family.
They were here
yesterday, too. Brian said.
What had been a casual moment
suddenly became tense.
I
dropped my head and watched
the pavement pass under my feet.
I glanced up once and saw a
teenage girl holding an older
woman.
I dropped my gaze
I was the designated dog sitter. I would sit
with one dog in the shade of the fire truck on
the other side of the lot as far from the stench
as humanly possible, and Roy and Suzie
would work with the other. About every
twenty minutes, the dogs were rotated. I
continued to sit in the grass and talk with
three of the firemen, all who were very
interested in how the dogs worked.
After an hour and a half of this routine, Roy
and Suzie emerged and called me over to the
warehouse door.
Find him?
SAR Dog News, June 2015
No. Both dogs are really interested in the
same spot, but neither one will alert.
Apache actually wants to go inside the
tube.
To make a formal alert, the dogs must sit.
Anything less is merely labeled as interest.
As they were discussing the next course of
action, one of the firemen called out that
they’d found him. Rescue workers inside the
compost tube had located the body. For a
moment, no one moved. Why hadn’t the
dogs found him?
We were discussing what went wrong when
Brian returned with his dog.
Try again. Roy turned to look at him.
Why?
They changed the air flow. When the
HAZMAT team went in this morning they
tried to make it easier on them by pushing
air through the tube to the outside.
They’ve turned it off now.
Cadaver dogs are good, but when the scent
is being forced in the opposite direction, it
creates confusion.
So, though soaked
through with sweat and exhausted, they
decided to give it another try.
This time, I sat with Apache just outside the
door.
I watched as Suzie led Schatzie
through the steps again, searching every
crevice.
When they returned, Roy was
smiling.
Yep, she got it!
He grabbed Apache’s leash and walked into
the building.
Schatzie melted into the
pavement beside me. Again, Roy returned
with a smile.
He got it, too, although he was a little
confused to begin with. He’s never had to
alert to a target that far away before.
Page 12
I thought back to the training sessions I’d sat
in on the previous summer. The sample was
never more than four feet from where the dog
could sit down. This time, the body was
about seventy five feet down a tube filled with
garbage. That tends to make things a little
difficult.
When we got home, we immediately bathed
the dogs for fear they’d stepped in something
corrosive in the plant. We then shed as many
layers as possible and scrubbed our boots
relentlessly. That wasn’t a smell we wanted
to stick around. By that time, we’d already
gotten word from the rescue workers that the
heart attack scenario was looking more and
more likely.
After we’d all had a chance to shower and eat
a late lunch, I sat down to call my Mom.
Happy birthday! She sang into the phone.
So what did you guys do today?
I laughed. You’re never going to believe
this one…
NEW PRODUCTS
EXFIL® SAR
tactical
The EXFIL® SAR is
the first helmet built
for Search and
Rescue to provide
tactical accessory
mounting
capabilities, including
a standard NVG
shroud, while
meeting key industrial and mountaineering
performance standards. The EXFIL® SAR
Tactical is optimized for use with night vision
devices and features a machined aluminum
Wilcox® NVG shroud. The helmet also
includes a 4-point CAM FIT™ retention
system with chin cup for optimal stability and
a Boa® Closure System to dial in precise fit
SAR Dog News, June 2015
adjustment while providing single-handed
quick release. Another feature included is the
SAR Accessory 2.0 Rail system that allows for
custom mounting. The helmet comes in U.S.
Coast Guard Orange, red, white and black.
The EXFIL® SAR
Backcountry was designed
for users who do not intend
on mounting night vision
devices to their helmet. This
version features a glassreinforced polycarbonate
shroud for mounting
cameras and lights. It also
includes a sport-style under
the chin retention strap with
Fidlock® magnetic buckle and a Boa®
Closure System to dial in precise fit
adjustment while providing single-handed
quick release. The SAR Accessory Rail 2. 0
System is optional.
For costs, specs and ordering information,
see
http://www.teamwendy.com/products/helmets
Sidewinder® Rescue light
The Sidewinder Rescue is a slim, lightweight
personal light that can
be used as a life-saving
beacon in times of
distress or during swift
water rescue
operations. A 185°
articulating head
features a “slide-inplace” diffuser that
projects omnidirectional light which
can be seen from almost anywhere.
The light is powered by 2 AA batteries. With
alkaline batteries, it weighs about 4 oz.
Lithium batteries add about an ounce to the
weight.
Page 13
Four LEDs provide all of the colors for a
distress marker with no need to use filters that
can get lost or broken All LEDs provide
unidirectional light for general lighting needs
and omni-directional light when using the
slide-in-place diffuser.
High-impact, super-tough, nylon cases offers
exceptional durability and weather resistance;
gasket-sealed, unbreakable polycarbonate
lens with scratch-resistant coating
A paracord lanyard provides extra security
from loss of the light and also allows it to be
worn around the neck. Additionally it can be
mounted on a helmet.
For costs, further product information and
purchase locations, see www.streamlight.com
DOES YOUR DOG COLLECT TICKS?
YOU NOW CAN TOO!
Furman University is conducting Infectious
Disease research. They are requesting that
people who live in the Southeast part of the
country catch ticks. Mail your ticks to the
address below. Yes that is correct, they want
your ticks!
Here is what you need to do...
1) Collect ticks you have (tick jars with
alcohol are great), If you do not have
ticks now send them until the end of
July.
2) Put them in a plastic bag (without the
alcohol).
3) Send them in (they can send you an
envelope and stamp if you'd like).
4) Fill out the brief survey (1 min or less)
linked on their web page at
http://johnquinniv.wix.com/furman-tickresearch#!help/cm8a
Furman Tick Project
CO: John E. Quinn
Department of Biology
3300 Poinsett Highway
Greenville, SC 29613
[email protected]
SAR Dog News, June 2015
The CDC counts fourteen (14) illnesses linked
to specific U.S. tick species. Lyme is the
most common, with about 30,000 cases
reported each year, although the CDC has
estimated that the true number could be ten
times higher.
Two new tick-borne viruses were recently
discovered in the Midwest and neither has a
specific treatment.
The CDC has confirmed nine cases of
Heartland virus and one death. Symptoms
include fever, fatigue, headaches, muscle
aches, diarrhea and low blood counts.
Identified in Missouri, the virus also was
reported in Tennessee and Oklahoma,
although the Lone Star
tick that spreads it lives
around the East and
Southeast.
Then there's the Bourbon
virus,
with
similar
symptoms,
discovered
last year after the death of a Kansas man and
named for his home county. Another patient,
in Oklahoma, recovered. The Kansas man
had found an embedded tick days before
getting sick. CDC researchers are searching
for the culprit species.
•
The CDC recommends:
• Shower soon after being outdoors to
spot ticks more easily and check pets
that can carry ticks inside.
• If you've been in tick-infested areas,
carefully do a full-body check, including
under arms, behind knees, ears and
hair.
• When in the woods, walk in the center
of trails, avoiding brush and leaf litter.
• Use bug repellent with DEET on
exposed skin, or wear long pants and
long sleeves.
If you are bitten, remove the tick as soon as
possible.
Page 14
Searchers, remember the CDC
advises
“When in the woods, walk in the
center of trails, avoiding brush and
leaf litter.”
GUN SOURCE RESIDUE
(Firearms Evidence)
STANDARD
The Board has approved the Gun Source
Residue standard. The supporting Evaluator
documents are being completed and will soon
be put on the NSDA website.
If you are interested in being part of the beta
testing, you will need to train your dog on the
following items:
Dismantled Hand Gun or Shotgun
Brass Shells (3 each)
Shotgun Shell (1 each)
Gun Oil (1 teaspoon)
Magazine (loaded or empty
Gun Powder both black and smokeless
(Min. 2 oz.- Max 6 oz.)
Examples: Blue Dot, Green Dot, Red Dot,
Bullsey, IMR SR4756, IMR 700-X,
Goex Black Rifle Powder. (Gunpowder
may be placed in glass jar with vented lid
or contained in mesh fabric.)
For more information and to take part in the
initial testing period, contact Cat Best at
[email protected]
SAR Dog News, June 2015
Page 15
FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO BELIEVE YOU SEARCH IN A TOUGH
AREA:
A request for dogs for the flooding in TX.
Instructions to handlers responding:
Mosquitoes are really bad. Bring high level Deet. Things are drying out but the silt is very deep
and, if wet, will suck you down.
Snakes are angry and moving. Brush piles: some are over twenty feet tall. Lots of large trees with
leaf litter and reeds making for collapsing footing. A walking stick to tap were you are going to step
will help keep you on your feet.
Like normal Texas weather, it heats up fast. Bring hydration for you and your partner. I highly
recommend hydrolyte for your K-9. Does not cause diarrhea like go dog.
Fire ants are also out in droves. Be careful. They love the debris piles and will attack you and your
dog if you step into where they are.
What are the search conditions in your area? Help new handlers understand the large variety of
conditions that are involved in K-9 search and rescue. [email protected]
NEPAL
Hello,
My name is Suze and I’m an
American friend of SAR
DOGS Nepal. I’m reaching out to the SAR dog
community here in the U.S. on their behalf to ask
if you might consider helping them with their
rebuilding and emergency response efforts in
affected areas in the aftermath of the major quake
that struck Nepal 6 weeks ago, even if only to
share this email or the fundraiser page with your
networks.
Like most SAR organizations, SAR DOGS Nepal
is a small nonprofit that scrambles to keep their
organization afloat. However, they face many
additional challenges including the fact that they
have just one vehicle for the whole team – a
motorbike(!) because the Nepal government taxes
vehicle imports 100%, so the off-road 4WD they
need for their work in the Himalayas, especially
SAR Dog News, June 2015
during landslides and monsoon flooding, as well
as the 7.8 magnitude quake in April, would cost
them double the normal price.
Another challenge they recently faced is that one
local official tried to steal the disaster relief
materials they were delivering to a remote village
in order to distribute them himself. They were
able to talk their way out of that situation,
fortunately. And now the Nepal government has
enforced an end to relief operations by anyone
other than themselves despite the fact that many
folks still need help and the government of Nepal
does not have the infrastructure to deliver the aid
needed. It is an unbelievable situation that’s just
compounding the damage, grief and despair that
is affecting so many.
Page 16
season, as well as food and medicine (which is
what they have been doing for the past 6 weeks)
and now to rebuild the schools in Dhading district
that have been damaged by the quake, and get
prepared for the monsoon landslides and flooding,
which are already extremely deadly in a normal
year, and expected to be much worse after the
quake and 100+ aftershocks.
I think they are a bit discouraged by the lack of
international help and the immensity of the task
before them. I’ve been trying really hard to raise
funds for them here in the US, but they don’t have
name recognition like the large NGO’s do, so
most of the money raised in the US goes to the
large NGO’s even though some of them have
already pulled their operations out of Nepal but
still advertise that the donations go to Nepal
(according to an insider I’m in contact with).
I put together a slideshow of SAR DOGS Nepal
work that not only includes their earthquake relief
efforts, but also their Search And Rescue work –
that tells their story, so if you have a moment to
take a look, I think you’ll find it worth your while.
I should also note that SAR DOGS Nepal is the
only qualified clicker-trained team of SAR dogs
and trainers in Nepal – not a common thing in a
country where dogs do not enjoy the same status
that they do in the U.S.
Adding to that, SAR DOGS Nepal must be
bilingual – English and Nepali – although some of
them speak additional languages as well – they
do rescue and recovery of many international
trekkers in Nepal.
I cannot begin to tell you how incredible these
guys and their dogs are – I am not in the SAR
community and never really thought about it much
until I connected with them. I have such an
appreciation of SAR work now – it’s opened up a
whole new world to me.
I should also mention that these guys are
incredibly humble and don’t really want to be
praised or singled out – they just want to help the
most vulnerable victims of the earthquake (they
have been focusing on communities that the gov’t
and large aid organizations have overlooked) – to
give them tarps to get them through the monsoon
I’m launching a social networking site for dog
lovers later this year (DogYearbook.com)) where I
plan to chronicle the work of SAR DOGS Nepal.
In the meantime, I’m reaching out to ask if you
SAR Dog News, June 2015
might consider supporting them in their
earthquake rebuilding and emergency response
efforts by sharing this email with your SAR and
other networks, and possibly giving a small
donation to the fundraiser I organized for them. (if
everyone gives $10-$20, we’d reach our funding
goal!) There are Facebook and Twitter icons on
the fundraiser page that you can click to share on
FB and Twitter too – that would be a big help in
and of itself.
Here’s their website:
http://www.sardogsnepal.asia/ (there are more
donation options on the homepage, including a
link to my fundraiser). They also tweet frequent
updates on their activities – I encourage anyone
interested in their work to follow them on Twitter:
https://twitter.com/sardogsnepal
As mentioned above, I organized a crowd funding
campaign for SAR DOGS Nepal and their
earthquake relief efforts here:
http://www.youcaring.com/emergencyfundraiser/nepal-earthquake-relief-reaching
smaller-forgotten-villages/355694
Page 17
professionals to help them improve their SAR
skills. Or maybe sponsoring one of their students
at their SAR dog clicker training academy at some
point? They have a sponsorship program that I
can send you more information about if you are
interested.
Here are bios of their core team (both human and
dog):
http://www.rettungshundenepal.de/wemwirhelfen_neu.htm (this is on
German veterinarian Daniela Neika’s website – to
translate to English on a PC, right click the screen
and select “Translate to English” in the menu that
pops up.)
Thanks for taking the time to read this. Things will
be pretty awful for a long time for many Nepalis,
as many lost their homes (hundreds of thousands)
and schools, and many farmers have lost their
crops, not to mention the massive loss of human
and animal lives. Here are some sobering
numbers: http://www.ekantipur.com/2015/05/22/t
op-story/240-nepalis-89-foreigners-stillmissing/405557.html
Nepal is already one of the poorest countries in
the world, and this major disaster has set them
back considerably. SAR DOGS Nepal will keep
busy with ongoing disaster response efforts for as
long as they are needed and as long as they are
funded.
Warm regards,
Suze Fisher, Brunswick, Maine
Friend of SAR DOGS Nepal
Information provided by K9_Specialty c/o
Marcia Koenig who states,
I would also like to ask if you would be interested
in the idea of developing a relationship with them
beyond their earthquake relief efforts. Perhaps
visiting their academy in Shyauli Bazaar which is
on
the
site
of
a
beautiful
resort
(http://www.mkr.asia/). This might seem like a
crazy idea – but it would be a once in a lifetime
experience. (I can attest to that – I spent time in
Nepal myself!) Or maybe going as a visiting
instructor – they welcome international SAR
“I have had contact with Daniela Neika for
several years. She is a dog handler in
Germany who goes there with her own
money to train them. From every contact I
have had with Daniela and the people in
Nepal, they are a legitimate group who
would put any donations to good use.”
SAR Dog News, June 2015
Page 18
UPCOMING NSDA TESTS
Visit www.n-sda.org for prerequisites and standards.
June 27
CLOSED
McDONOUGH, GEORGIA
Land HRD
To request more Land or WATER HRD dates
Bill Hilsman
[email protected]
July 17, 18 & 19
Land HRD
Water HRD
K.T. Irwin at:
[email protected]
CODY, WYOMING
September 11,12,13
TITUSVILLE, PENNSYLVANIA
Trailing
Heather Proper-VanValkenberg
Area
[email protected]
Land HRD, if requested
Water HRD, if requested
October 9, 10, 11
Area
Trailing
Land HRD
Water HRD
LUPTON, MICHIGAN
Victoria Thompson
[email protected]
UPCOMING OTHER AGENCY TESTS
June 19
BROOKINGS, S. DAKOTA
SARTECH™ II Exam
Robert Noziska
[email protected]
July 3, 5
FLAGSTAFF, AZ
Canine SARTECH™ Area
Canine SARTECH™ HRD
Cindy McArthur
[email protected]
July 17, 18
LIBBY, MONTANA
SARTECH™ II Exam
Susan Ague
[email protected]
July 19, 20, 21
SARTECH™ II
WINDBER, PENNSYLVANIA
September 14
IPWDA
COLUMBIA FALLS, MONTANA
John Boburchuk
[email protected]
Kim Gilmore
[email protected]
SAR Dog News, June 2015
Page 19
KIBBLES & BITS
by Susan Bulanda
To my Loyal readers – Do you have any subjects that you would like me to
cover? Send them to me at [email protected] with K & B in the subject line.
Dog Breeds for SAR
In the March K&B I promised to review some of the breeds of dogs that I
have found to make great SAR dogs or that I feel have potential to be
good SAR dogs.
As a group, the livestock guarding dogs are not a good choice for SAR work. Of course there are
always exceptions. Understanding what they were bred to do and how they do it will make it clear
why they are some of the breeds least likely to be a good SAR dog.
Livestock guarding dogs are bred not to depend on humans to do their job. Typically the dogs are
raised with the stock, which can include, sheep, goats, horses,
chickens, and live their whole lives with them. They bond with the
herd and the livestock accepts them as part of the herd. Typically
these dogs work in pairs of two. They are also used to guard
equipment and will guard and protect human families as well. What
they protect depends on what they are introduced to, raised with and
how they are trained.
They are usually white or tan in color and are very territorial. They protect the stock from all types
of predators such as mountain lions, wolves, feral dogs, coyotes, bears, and humans. Their main
job is to repel the predator and only attack if the predator comes too close to the herd. Since these
dogs are very intelligent, they are not fooled by the tricks that some predators try in order to lure
the dogs away from the herd. For example, one or two wolves or coyotes will get close to the
herd, hoping to lure the dogs into chasing them. While the dogs chase the predator, others sneak
in and kill one or more members of the herd. A good livestock guarding dog will not be fooled by
these tricks.
The way these dogs work is to move slowly with the herd. They understand when a female has a
baby and will not come between them, but go around.
Typically these dogs have a better than average sense of hearing, sight and smell. Livestock
protection dogs like an orderly, predictable environment and will become curious or aroused over
anything that is not normal to their environment.
The only person they allow to approach the herd is the person or persons whom they associate as
belonging with the herd, usually the shepherd. They will only allow the shepherd’s herding dog
near the herd if they know and recognize the dog.
To do their job well, protection dogs do not depend on their human owners for affection or
attention.
SAR Dog News, May 2015
Page 20
They are very independent and make decisions on their own based on any given situation. For
this reason they are not easy to train; they are not submissive to the whims of humans.
They do not care for strangers, animal or human, and will only accept a stranger if they have been
taught to do so. However, since they are bred to be calm and aloof, in most cases they will remain
neutral or standoffish rather than gush all over strangers as other breeds do.
Livestock guarding dogs are used in the United States although they were originally developed in
other countries. They have been successfully used in the US since the late 1970’s to protect large
herds of sheep that were scattered over vast areas.
For those who are interested, Drs. Green and Woodruff published a survey in 1988 of the
evaluation of the use of livestock protection dogs in the US. This study evaluated 763 dogs and
includes data on breed differences in their likeliness to bite or injure livestock and/or people.
Another study was conducted by Dr. Ray and Lorna Coppinger at Hampshire College in MA. Of all
of the livestock guarding dogs, the Great Pyrenees has the least recorded bites to humans.
Here is a list of the most common livestock guarding dogs.
Akbash Dog
Kangal Dog
Cane Corso
Croatian Sheepdog
Komondor
Anatolian Shepherd
Karagash Dog
Castro Laboreiro
Great Pyrenees
Kuvasz
Maremma-Abruzzese Sheepdog
Polish Tatra Sheepdog
Shar Planinetz
Tibetan Mastiff
Slovak Tchouvatch
Although they are not considered livestock guarding
dogs per se,
the following breeds share many of the traits of the livestock guarding dogs in that they
are very aloof and tend
to be difficult to train and un-accepting of
strangers.
Fila Brasileiro
Perro de Presa Canario
None of the breeds listed above have the qualities to be a good SAR dog.
They are not suitable as pets unless the potential dog owner has the
experience to work with, socialize and control a dog with these qualities.
For more information about livestock guarding dogs you can get a copy of Livestock Protection
Dogs, Selection, Care and Training by David E. Sims and Orysia Dawydiak, ISBN: 0-940269-05-8
SAR Dog News, June 2015
THE LAST
HOWL
By Sue Wolff
Opinions expressed in this column
are those of the author and not
necessarily those of the National
Search Dog Alliance.
Those of you who have big dogs, especially
German shepherds, know how they react to
thunder storms…poorly. Something about
“that” noise seems to terrify them.
My first dog, a Labrador-GSD mix was so
frightened of the storms that he tried to dig
his way thru the carpet in a closet in order to
get himself to a safer place. The second GSD
barked at the noise…perhaps a more logical
reaction but still one of anxiety. My current
GSD slinks into the bathroom, the only room
in the house with no windows, and curls up in
a ball by the shower.
When I heard of thundershirt, I asked
around and found no one who had ever used
one but most everyone had heard good
things about them. Not having any pet stores
near me, I never got around to ordering a
shirt online and consequently forgot about it.
Recently when I was traveling, I was in a
specialty pet shop and found thundershirts
there. After examining one of them and
liking what I saw, I purchased the XL which
was the size for my dog (65-110 lbs) listed on
the package. The price was $39.99 for the
original heather gray which is the cost I had
seen online and in catalogs. (Specialty colors
are now available at a cost of $44.95.) Not
only was the cost reasonable but the sizes on
the box were accurate, something that is not
always true with K-9 products.
Page 21
So I sound like an ad for this product but it
works!! My GSD has never had a problem
wearing the shirt nor did she object to having
it strapped onto her. The first time she wore
it, she went into the bathroom during a storm
but came out before it was over. Since then
she has stayed in her usual spots when
wearing the shirt during a storm.
I put the shirt on her when I see/hear a
storm approaching or notice she is becoming
hinky, a precursor to a storm’s arrival. She
has never objected to wearing it, even if the
storm never appears.
There are a few other anxiety reducing shirts
on the market (Kong® makes one which
additionally encases the dog’s legs; the
thunderhirt wraps only around the dog’s
body) so don’t take my word for it. Look at
what’s available before making a decision.
The premise behind these anxiety reducing
shirts is constant pressure. This pressure has
a calming effect on most dogs and humans
i.e. people with autism using pressure to
relieve continual anxiety.
Symptoms for
which to use the shirt are panting, shaking,
drooling, barking/whining, hiding, scratching,
licking, bolting, eliminating indoors, seizures,
etc.
According to the thundershirt box, this shirt
can also be used for separation anxiety, car
or travel anxiety, crate anxiety, fireworks, vet
visits, any excitability and as a general
training tool. There is further explanation on
the website at www.thundershirt.com
So bottom line is that I’m thrilled that
someone finally came up with something to
help dogs with anxiety problems…and that it
works.
SAR Dog News, May 2015
**Post Script by Sue Wolff: The article
written by Suzanne Elshult, SCVSAR K-9
and Marcia Koenig, KCSD on Search and
Rescue K-9 Lessons Learned: OSO,
Washington Landslide in the current issue
(Feb/Mar) of K9Cop Magazine (page 62) is
excellent and a must read for any SAR K-9
handler. It is comprehensive as well as
educational.
The ten page article is
prominently featured in the magazine along
with pictures, statistics and extensive data.
Emergency
managers
and
Incident
Commanders can also benefit from this well
written piece.
Board of Directors—
Susan Fleming, President, Pennsylvania
[email protected]
Terry Crooks, Vice-President, Montana
[email protected]
Julie Gibson, Secretary, Idaho
[email protected]
Sherry Scruggs, Treasurer, Georgia
[email protected]
Robert Noziska, New Mexico
[email protected]
Heather Proper VanValkenberg, Pennsylvania
Advocacy Council
Susan Bulanda
Frank Hancock
Lisa Higgins
Marcia Koenig
Carol Ann Namur
Larry Welker
Dee Wild
Arthur E. Wolff
Page 22
TRAINING, SEMINARS & CONFERENCES
REACH OVER 1,300 SAR K-9 HANDLERS. LIST YOUR
TRAININGS, SEMINARS AND CONFERENCES IN THE
SAR DOG NEWS
Contact Editor Norma Snelling at [email protected]
Training, Seminars & Conferences Continued
June 26 - 28, Beginning/Introduction to Canine Water Search, Western Montana
For information: Deb Termenstein at [email protected]
June 27 - 28, Advanced Disaster Techniques for K-9s, Camp Atterbury, Edinburgh, Indiana. For
information call Lillian Hardy at 812-526-0013 or e-mail [email protected]
June 27 - 28, Ground Search Technician, Camp Atterbury, Edinburgh, Indiana. For information call Lillian
Hardy at 812-526-0013 or e-mail [email protected]
July 3 - 4 Annual Water HRD Training Cody, Wyoming
Contact K.T. Irwin at [email protected] or go to NWK9SAR.com and click on training
July 11 - 12, Water Cadaver Search Techniques for K-9s, Camp Atterbury, Edinburgh, Indiana. For
information call Lillian Hardy at 812-526-0013 or e-mail [email protected]
July 24 - 26, Beginning/Introduction to Canine Water Search, Western Montana
For information: Deb Termenstein at [email protected]
July 25 - 26, Intermediate Air Scenting Techniques for K-9s, Camp Atterbury, Edinburgh, Indiana. For
information call Lillian Hardy at 812-526-0013 or e-mail [email protected]
August 1, Crime Scene Operations – Blood Borne Pathogens, Camp Atterbury, Edinburgh, Indiana. For
information call Lillian Hardy at 812-526-0013 or e-mail [email protected]
August 2, K-9 Pretest, Camp Atterbury, Edinburgh, Indiana. For more information call Lillian Hardy at 812526-0013 or e-mail [email protected]
August 7-9, Advanced Topics in Canine Water Search, Western Montana
For information: Deb Tirmenstein at: [email protected]
August 29-30, Advanced Land Cadaver Techniques for K-9s, Camp Atterbury, Edinburgh, Indiana. For
more information call Lillian Hardy at 812-526-0013 or e-mail [email protected]
Training, Seminars & Conferences Continued
September 11-13, Intermediate Canine Water Search, Western Montana
For information: Deb Tirmenstein at: [email protected]
September 17 - 20, North American Search Dog Network (NASDN) Fall Seminar, Camp Kitaki, Louisville,
NE. For information and registration: www.nasdn.org
September 19 - 20, K-9 Credentialing Test, Camp Atterbury, Edinburgh, Indiana. For more information call
Lillian Hardy at 812-526-0013 or e-mail [email protected]
September 27 – October 2, Appomattox, Virginia. Beginning and Advanced Trailing/Tracking, HRD (Land
and Water) and Air Scent. Web site www.olddominionsar.com/ or call Ronnie 3360744-5246 or Tim/Suzy 615452-9116
October 4 – 9, CSAR 2015 Seminar, Camp ASCCA, Jacksons Gap, Alabama
Area, Trailing, HRD Land and HRD Water. For information: www.nasdak9.og/CSAR2015 or www.CSAR.ORG
October 9-11, Canine Water Search, Level TBA, Western Montana
For information: Deb Tirmenstein at [email protected]
October 10, Skills Day, Camp Atterbury, Edinburgh, Indiana. For more information call Lillian Hardy at 812526-0013 or e-mail [email protected]