By Lisa Ramsden
THE amazing work carried out by search dogs, and their owners, who make up a local charity is about to be showcased on our TV screens – not once but twice this week.
Volunteers with the Newcastle-based Search and Rescue Dog Association (Ireland North), of the four-legged and two-legged varieties, will be the stars in new programmes on UTV and BBC iPlayer on Thursday and Friday.
Both episodes will celebrate the dedicated volunteers, and their incredible dogs, who are on standby, ready to help, whenever needed.
Starting tomorrow, at 8.30pm on UTV, the six-part ‘Dogs with Jobs’ will take a behind the scenes look at these frontline workers of the canine world and how their owners dedicate their lives to working in partnership with dogs.
Then, on Friday, the BBC’s ‘Pet Saving Lives’ documentary will also look at the team’s dogs – which are all family pets, but with a very special calling.
Showcasing, and applauding, the incredible link between humans and our four-legged friends, the UTV series features not just the work of the local SARDA IN team but also guide dogs, assistance dogs and dogs undertaking vital conservation work.
Thursday’s show focuses on the work of the local canine search unit.
Recorded in the local mountains, as well as at Tollymore Forest Park, viewers of tomorrow’s show will get to learn more about the tight bond shared between these highly skilled dogs and their owners.
This episode shows the lifesaving work they’re carrying out, with the help of their dogs.
The following day’s documentary has a similar vein, applauding these dynamic duos of specially trained dogs and their volunteer handlers who do all they can to help find missing people.
UTV presenter Emma Patterson learns how they save people under extreme pressure, and how the dogs are a valuable asset in their team.
She also discovers what goes into the dogs’ training and how they are taught to search in various terrain – from rural mountainous environments to urban areas and even water.
As the series progresses, viewers will also meet dogs which have been trained to alert their diabetic owner when she is about to have a hypoglycaemic attack, in addition to guide dog puppies who are taking their first steps in their career.
In further episodes, a family who lost their daughter in the tragic Creeslough petrol station explosion in County Donegal reconnect with the handlers and the dogs who helped search in the aftermath and in another episode, dogs which provide therapy to children in school and at home will fall under the spotlight.
The UTV team also went behind the scenes at both Maghaberry Prison and Belfast International Airport to see the dogs safeguarding our security and visited the Royal Irish Regiment and their mascot, Irish Wolfhound Brian Boru, as he prepared to go on parade.
Speaking earlier this week, Raph O’Connor, one of the SARDA IN dog handlers involved in these shows, said the team was thrilled to be approached by both UTV and the BBC.
The Newcastle man said he hopes the programmes outline how their dogs have been through a rigorous training programme in their specialised discipline, from air-scenting mountain search to cadaver victim recovery, and that they are ready and willing to help 24/7.
Viewers of both these shows are sure to enjoy their front row seats as they see how the SARDA team quickly and professionally respond, helping the emergency services and other volunteer groups find their missing person.
Equally, what will also be evident, is what makes a great search and rescue dog – and the passion and commitment required to be a volunteer on a search and rescue team.
