Results 1 to 4 of 4

Thread: Avalanche dogs

  1. #1
    Senior Dog MightyThor's Avatar
    Join Date
    May 2014
    Location
    Bend, Oregon
    Posts
    2,024
    Thanked: 3035

    Avalanche dogs

    I went skiing at my local mountain today and took a break to watch an avalanche dog demonstration. These working dogs are an impressive tool that ski patrol uses to keep the mountain safe.

    We watched Mango, a 6 year old golden retriever, demonstrating a search for a buried person. A trained avalanche dog can find a buried person faster than any human, and with avalanches time is the most important factor for survival.

    I asked what breeds they used and the answer was Labradors and golden retrievers. The reason? They need smart, driven, athletic and trainable dogs that are also super comfortable and friendly with people. The dogs spend all day patrolling the mountain and meeting people, and the handlers consider the dogs to be ambassadors of the mountain. I was super lucky to ride a lift with one of the labs today.

    It’s clear these dogs love their jobs! Here is Mango finding her handler “buried” in the snow. It’s all a game to her!

    Mighty Thor, "So Much Dog", born 1/6/2014
    And baby Barley, born 3/9/2018

    Hidden Content

  2. The Following 6 Users Say Thank You to MightyThor For This Useful Post:

    Jen5200 (04-17-2019), kimbersmom (04-18-2019), Mollysmomma (04-19-2019), Mr Kleb (04-18-2019), Snowshoe (04-18-2019), zd262 (04-18-2019)

  3. #2
    Senior Dog Shelley's Avatar
    Join Date
    May 2014
    Location
    United States
    Posts
    1,226
    Thanked: 1739
    Mango! What a great name for her color!

    These dogs work so hard, just for the joy of finding someone in the snow, aren't retrievers grand?

  4. #3
    Senior Dog zd262's Avatar
    Join Date
    May 2015
    Location
    Raleigh, NC
    Posts
    1,280
    Thanked: 760
    That's so cool! What was it like being on the lift with them? I imagine that is a difficult task to train
    Hidden Content

    Hidden Content

    Bubba's instagram: @thebubbinator

  5. #4
    Senior Dog MightyThor's Avatar
    Join Date
    May 2014
    Location
    Bend, Oregon
    Posts
    2,024
    Thanked: 3035
    They jump right up and sit next to their handler who can hold onto the dog's harness. It's one of the first things they do with puppies - get them used to riding a chair with their handler. So cute! The dog I rode with kind of stepped out in front of the chair and did a little running jump as the chair spun around and he knew exactly when to jump off at the top. They have kennels at the top of some of the lifts so the dogs can be positioned around the mountain throughout the day depending on conditions.

    Here's a little video about them.


  6. The Following 2 Users Say Thank You to MightyThor For This Useful Post:

    barry581 (04-18-2019), Murphy030813 (04-19-2019)

 



Not a Member of the Labrador Retriever Chat Forums Yet?
Register for Free and Share Your Labrador Retriever Photos

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •