9 11 Search and Rescue Dogs: Honoring the Canine Heroes of 9/11

These incredible dogs were part of a special unit trained to locate survivors amidst the rubble of the World Trade Center.

Their work was crucial in the aftermath of the attacks, as they helped identify over 1,800 victims.

Many of these dogs were Labrador Retrievers, a breed renowned for their keen sense of smell and calm demeanor.

Their handlers were also trained to work alongside their canine partners, often in the most intense and chaotic environments imaginable.

These search and rescue dogs were deployed in the days and weeks following the attacks, helping to locate survivors in the rubble of the Twin Towers.

The National Disaster Search Dog Foundation (NSDF) was founded in 1995 by Wilma Melville, a retired teacher, in response to the Oklahoma City bombing.

The organization scours shelters for dogs with search and rescue potential and prepares them for jobs with fire departments at a cost of about $10,000.

NSDF provides the trained dogs free of charge, and their training helped prepare them for disaster response.

The NSDF's Executive Director, Debra Tosch, was part of California Task Force 1 at the World Trade Center with her NSDF-trained black Labrador Retriever, "Abby."

Consider reading: How to Become a Search and Rescue Dog Handler

The National Disaster Search Dog Foundation (NSDF) was founded in 1995 by Wilma Melville, a retired teacher. She recognized a need for more dogs specifically trained for disaster search and rescue work after the Oklahoma City bombing in 1995.

The training costs about $10,000, but NSDF provides the dogs free of charge. The organization scours shelters, looking for dogs with search and rescue potential, and prepares them for jobs with fire departments.

Tosch, the NSDF Executive Director, and her black Labrador Retriever, "Abby", were among the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)-certified canine search specialists at the World Trade Center.

About 300 search teams responded to the World Trade Center, but only about 100 were prepared for a disaster of that magnitude. Many were wilderness search and rescue dogs, experts at finding people missing in the woods.

Donations started to pour in after the World Trade Center, thanks to some television coverage listing NSDF's phone number. The support and publicity helped make Melville's 20-year dream, the National Training Center, a reality.

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Many New Yorkers felt an overwhelming need to help rebuild their city in the wake of the destruction and loss of the Sept. 11 terror attacks.

Dr. Otto's search dog facility was made possible by the work of dogs during that terrible time, which raised public awareness of search and rescue dogs' capabilities.

The media coverage of 9/11 focused on the dogs as a "ray of sunshine" in a bleak landscape, capturing hearts and minds all over the world.

The performance of the dogs on 9/11 sparked serious study of the effects of this kind of work on canine bodies and minds, thanks to generous funding from the AKC Canine Health Foundation.

The National Disaster Search Dog Foundation (NSDF) was founded in 1995 by a retired teacher, Wilma Melville, who recognized a need for more dogs specifically trained for search and rescue work.

NSDF scours shelters for dogs with search and rescue potential and prepares them for jobs with fire departments, providing the dogs free of charge.

The training costs about $10,000, but NSDF receives funding from donations, which poured in after the World Trade Center disaster thanks to media coverage listing their phone number.

Debora Jackson, a selfless New Yorker, was one of many who felt an overwhelming need to help rebuild their city in the wake of the destruction and loss of the Sept. 11 terror attacks.

NSDF Executive Director Debra Tosch was among the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)-certified canine search specialists at the World Trade Center, along with her NSDF-trained black Labrador Retriever, "Abby."

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Therapy dogs have been easing human emotional suffering for decades, with a 4-pound Yorkshire Terrier named "Smoky" credited as the first therapy dog during World War II.

Dog trainer Cindy Ehlers recognized the power of therapy dogs after the Thurston High School shooting in 1998 and started an organization called HOPE Animal-Assisted Crisis Response.

Ehlers and her Keeshond puppy Tikva traveled to New York after 9/11 to provide crisis-response support, where they helped workers cope with grief, fear, and confusion.

Tikva's crisis-relief training and calm demeanor made her an ideal "comfort dog" for responders at Ground Zero, providing a much-needed distraction from the horror.

The Red Cross mental-health experts noticed that workers were more likely to talk to the dogs than human therapists, and Tikva's presence helped take minds off the tragedy, if only for a few moments.

A firefighter even called V-Mat to ask where the "comfort dogs" were, saying they were the only thing that helped him get through the day.

Rescue dogs like Bretagne, a Labrador Retriever, were trained to detect human remains in the rubble of the World Trade Center.

The Red Cross worked with the American Kennel Club to certify over 100 search and rescue dogs for the 9/11 response.

Bretagne was one of the oldest dogs to participate in the search efforts, starting her training at just 12 weeks old.

These dogs were trained to locate specific scents, such as the smell of human skin cells, to find survivors.

Some of these canine heroes were trained to detect the scent of certain chemicals, like gasoline or propane.

Bretagne's handler, Denise Corliss, credited her dog's keen sense of smell for helping to locate a survivor on the 22nd day of the search efforts.

The search and rescue dogs were deployed in pairs, with one dog leading the way and the other following closely behind.

These dogs were incredibly efficient, with some teams covering over 2 miles of rubble in just a few hours.

Their hard work and dedication helped to locate 10 survivors and recover over 1,000 human remains.

Bretagne's work on 9/11 was just one chapter in her long and distinguished career as a search and rescue dog.

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