Meet Pono, Cowichan, B.C.'s newest search and rescue recruit
Cowichan Search and Rescue has a new recruit. His name is Pono and he is a sixteen-month-old Nova Scotia Duck Tolling retriever.
Pono is currently in training to become certified as a search and rescue K9. Once that’s complete, he will become one of six vital search and rescue dogs on Vancouver Island.
On average the search and rescue (SAR) team responds to around 50 calls a year. Those calls are mainly for missing or injured hikers.
When a call comes in, response time is crucial.
"The longer it takes to deploy, the more time we lose to find someone," said Elodie Roger, team lead with Cowichan Search and Rescue.
If a search dog is needed in the Cowichan Valley, they currently have to use Nanaimo’s search dogs. If those dogs aren’t available there are three others, two in Comox and one in Campbell River.
"To be able to get a dog on the ground quicker is way better," said Jamie Tudway-Cains, president of Cowichan Search and Rescue. "Before it gets too contaminated with all the other teams, the RCMP and their dogs."
It’s Pono’s nose that will change the way search volunteers will be deployed.
Sixteen-month-old Pono is shown: (CTV News)
"We cover 10 to 20 times more ground than a team on foot I would say," said Roger.
"That gives us time to concentrate on other areas," said Tudway-Cains
As keen as Pono is to get on the job, he’s not quite there yet
It’s a two year process to become certified for both Pono and Roger. Both have already passed the puppy assessment where the pair was evaluated by RCMP dog handlers.
"He did very well," said Roger.
Pono and handler Elodie Roger are shown: Nov. 11, 2021 (CTV News)
Now this pair will spend the next year training and building a bond with each other before being fully validated as a search team by the RCMP.
"He’s fun, he’s really fun," said Roger.
The bonding part hasn’t been an issue for the pair as the two are family, on and off the job.
"They are family dogs and they are also working dogs when it’s time to work," said Roger.
"Right now, he seems to be pretty good at both so it’s going very well."
Once validated, the pair will be available to assist on mutual aid searches, when needed, across the province.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING New York appeals court overturns Harvey Weinstein's 2020 rape conviction from landmark #MeToo trial
New York’s highest court on Thursday overturned Harvey Weinstein’s 2020 rape conviction, finding the judge at the landmark #MeToo trial prejudiced the ex-movie mogul with improper rulings, including a decision to let women testify about allegations that weren’t part of the case.
BREAKING Monthly earnings rise, payroll employment falls: jobs report
The number of vacant jobs in Canada increased in February, while monthly payroll employment decreased in food services, manufacturing, and retail trade, among other sectors.
Doctors say capital gains tax changes will jeopardize their retirement. Is that true?
The Canadian Medical Association asserts the Liberals' proposed changes to capital gains taxation will put doctors' retirement savings in jeopardy, but some financial experts insist incorporated professionals are not as doomed as they say they are.
Remains from a mother-daughter cold case were found nearly 24 years later, after a deathbed confession from the suspect
A West Virginia father is getting some sense of closure after authorities found the remains of his young daughter and her mother following a deathbed confession from the man believed to have fatally shot them nearly two decades ago.
Something in the water? Canadian family latest to spot elusive 'Loch Ness Monster'
For centuries, people have wondered what, if anything, might be lurking beneath the surface of Loch Ness in Scotland. When Canadian couple Parry Malm and Shannon Wiseman visited the Scottish highlands earlier this month with their two children, they didn’t expect to become part of the mystery.
Metro Vancouver mayors call for serial killer Robert Pickton to be denied parole
A dozen mayors from around Metro Vancouver say federal Attorney General and Justice Minister Arif Virani should deny parole for notorious B.C. serial killer Robert Pickton, and reassess the parole and sentencing system for 'prolific offenders and mass murderers.'
What do weight loss drugs mean for a diet industry built on eating less and exercising more?
Recent injected drugs like Wegovy and its predecessor, the diabetes medication Ozempic, are reshaping the health and fitness industries.
2 military horses that broke free and ran loose across London are in serious condition
Two military horses that bolted and ran miles through the streets of London after being spooked by construction noise and tossing their riders were in a serious condition and required operations, a British government official said Thursday.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.