Heroic Search & Rescue Dogs of 9/11: Tribute to America's Brave Canine First Responders | Inspiring True Stories for Dog Lovers & History Buffs

I first found out about this book from reading a news paper article about the USAR K-9 teams of Texas Task Force 1 in The San Antonio Express News about what they went through on 9/11 five years ago. Having a strong interest in K-9 teams and possibly wanting to consider it as a career one day I knew I had to get it. After reading this book for the first time I have to say that it was definitely well worth it. Never before have I read such a gripping account of Search and Rescue K-9 teams. This book goes into great detail about the sequences of events that triggered the unparelled nation-wide response from complete strangers. If you had a trained dog on 9/11 chances are your pager went off or your phone rang that morning calling you away to answer the call of duty. From never before seen photographs and emotionally charged first hand accounts of K-9 handlers Author Nora Bauer puts the reader in the center of the action like no other writer can. From the sights and heartwrenching experiences of Ground Zero, to the massive recovery effort at the Pentagon and finally to sifting through human remains of a catastrophy at the Fresh Kills Landfill across the river from Manhattan in New Jersey. This story not only examines the harrowing aspect of Search and recovery work but it also delves deep into the emotions and mind set of dogs and their handlers as they endure punishing eight to twelve hour shifts combing through the rubble and to providing emotional support to firefighters and other rescue workers on site that had lost some much in such a short period of time. They say a picture is worth a thousand words and it really is true because when you look into the eyes of the Search dogs after a long tour you read the kind of emotions they're feeling just by looking at the sad and often rejected expressions on their faces. If anyone thinks that dogs don't feel the same emotions that people do this book will certainly prove you dead wrong. Search and Rescue dogs come in all different breeds and each have their own unique set of skills that they brought to the table following the attacks of 9/11. From Border Collies, German Sheperds, Golden Retrievers and Belgium Malenois. All were trained as either live find or Cadaver dogs. And sometimes one dog would be cross trained in both disciplines which would be needed in the days following the attacks. Over the years and especially after 9/11 the media has emphasised the actions of everyday heroes. Everything from firefighters, police officers and most recently the brave service men and women of our armed forces but this book introduces you to a new breed of heroes; the unsung heroes of September 11, the Search and Rescue dogs who brought relief and in many ways closure to the families and to the rescuers of September 11, 2001. I highly recommend this book to anyone who is a dog lover. It's a must Read for the whole family.