Hank Whittemore

A fascinating subject to read about, the relationship between an SAR dog and its handler is interesting to me. This book is a great look how that relationship is born, develops and is used during search and rescue campaigns via the biography of Caroline Hebard, one of the leaders of the SAR dogs phenomenon.

To be honest, Hebard would be labeled a "mary-sue" if she were fictional: the beautiful daughter of a British diplomat, she was raised internationally and knows six languages, is brilliant with a slight hand at politics, has a wonderful, long term marriage and intelligent, successful children, and (finally) was one of the breakthrough role models not just for SAR dogs but women in SAR. Her drive and ambition are almost surreal, and would be off-putting if it weren't for the fact that her entire life has been devoted to saving other peoples' lives.

What makes this story work, though, is Hebard's relationships with her various SAR dogs. The training they receive and the traumas they go through during search and rescue campaigns is awe inspiring. This is the perfect book to read if you want to get a better idea of what goes on between an SAR dog and its trainer at both the technical and emotional level.

The writing is solid, but not great. It feels stilted, but there is also so much information packed into this short book that it is almost understandable. It's also worth remembering that this book came out in the 90s, before 9/11 changed people's awareness of SAR dogs. Hebard is, for most of the 70s and 80s, literally the underdog of standard SAR services, and her fight to have her dogs recognized was difficult and took decades.

Despite the clunky writing style, this is still a fascinating book to read. Highly recommended.… (meer)