{"id":1317090,"date":"2019-12-03T20:00:00","date_gmt":"2019-12-04T03:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.postindependent.com\/?p=991476"},"modified":"2019-12-04T14:29:11","modified_gmt":"2019-12-04T21:29:11","slug":"on-the-trail-with-garfield-county-search-and-rescue-dogs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/local-news\/on-the-trail-with-garfield-county-search-and-rescue-dogs\/","title":{"rendered":"On the trail with Garfield County Search and Rescue dogs"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Search and rescue dog Billy along with handler Jody Gruys prepare to head out for a search during training on Sunday morning.<\/strong>
\nChelsea Self \/ Post Independent<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Weeko is a petite 8-year old Golden retriever with flax-colored fur, slender frame and delicate features.<\/p>\n

And cute.<\/p>\n

In fact, Weeko means \u201cpretty girl\u201d in Sioux.<\/p>\n

But don\u2019t let the cuteness fool you. Weeko is a working dog from snout to tail.<\/p>\n

If a hiker, hunter or anyone else gets lost in the wilderness between the Maroon Bells and Flat Tops, Weeko is one of five certified search-and-rescue dogs that may be called in to look for the missing person.<\/p>\n

Weeko\u2019s work ethic was on display at a recent Garfield County Search and Rescue canine training in December.<\/p>\n

Weeko scoured the trail, nose to the ground, trailing a Boy Scout hiding behind bushes by Elk Creek in New Castle. She didn\u2019t slow down until she\u2019d found the \u201cmissing\u201d subject.<\/p>\n

And she\u2019s not alone in her pursuit.<\/p>\n

All five Garfield County search-and-rescue dogs are \u201chigh drive, high-energy, working breed dogs for a reason,\u201d said Jody Gruys, team leader for the volunteer group.<\/p>\n

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Search-and-rescue dog Billy leads hander Jody Gruys back through the woods after a successful find during training on Sunday morning.<\/strong>
\nChelsea Self \/ Post Independent<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n
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Search-and-rescue dog Billy along with handler Jody Gruys prepare to head out for a search during training on Sunday morning.<\/strong>
\nChelsea Self \/ Post Independent<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

\u201cThe breeds (have) a built-in retrieve, prey or herding drive that we work with,\u201d Gruys said.<\/p>\n

Watch Garfield Search and Rescue dog training in New Castle:<\/strong><\/p>\n

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The mock missions Weeko takes part in proceed much like a real venture, but are far shorter and no one is in danger.<\/p>\n

In the Dec. 1 event, Boy Scouts or Cub Scouts troops volunteered, posing as missing persons. They rubbed gauze over their face and hands, and placed the gauze in a bag to be used as a scent article for the dogs to track.<\/p>\n

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Search-and-rescue dog MacKinsey and handler Wendy Wampler play together after a successful find during training on Sunday morning.<\/strong>
\nChelsea Self \/ Post Independent<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n
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Search-and-rescue dog Sasha licks handler Dee Lehman\u2019s face before heading out on a search during training on Sunday morning.<\/strong>
\nChelsea Self \/ Post Independent<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

How dogs track scents differ, and search dogs fall broadly into two types of scent tracking. Some dogs work in \u201ctrailing,\u201d or following scents of a person left on the ground. Other dogs work scents in the air.<\/p>\n

After finding the subject during the training, the dogs are rewarded with their favorite game.<\/p>\n

Weeko likes to fetch a yellow ball that her handler, Debbie Wickersham, keeps hidden until the subject is located.<\/p>\n

Gruys\u2019 German shepherd Diesel likes to play tug-o-war. Border collie Angus likes his handler Wyman Bontrager to throw a Frisbee.<\/p>\n

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Search-and-rescue dog Diesel runs back to the truck with his toy after a successful find during training on Sunday morning.<\/strong>
\nChelsea Self \/ Post Independent<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n
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Handler Jody Gruys and her search-and-rescue dog Diesel play tug together after a successful find during a training session near New Castle on Sunday morning.<\/strong>
\nChelsea Self \/ Post Independent<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

\u201cTo them, it\u2019s a game,\u201d handler Wendy Wampler said. \u201cBut there\u2019s also a work ethic. They learn that it is truly a job, and when it\u2019s time to go to work, it\u2019s time to go to work.\u201d<\/p>\n

Training working dogs<\/h4>\n

All the Garfield County Search and Rescue handlers are volunteers, and have to spend years training and maintaining a trained search canine.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not something you can do halfway with these dogs, so you (train) as much as possible, as often as possible,\u201d Gruys said.<\/p>\n

In addition to the monthly gatherings, the team also travels once a month for Search and Rescue Dogs of the United States training, usually on the Front Range.<\/p>\n

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Chelsea Self \/ Post Independent<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

They also get together at least one weekend day, and Wednesdays are reserved for keeping the dogs\u2019 human remains detection skills sharp.<\/p>\n

For the Garfield Search and Rescue dog team, it can take up to three years to train a dog to achieve the advanced certifications.<\/p>\n

\u201cSince we\u2019re volunteers, it takes a little bit longer than if we were like a paid professional that got a dog that was already semi-trained, or trained every day,\u201d Gruys said.<\/p>\n

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From left to right: MacKinsey and handler Wendy Wampler, Billy and Diesel with handler Jody Gruys, Angus and handler Wyman Bontrager, handler Debbie Wiersham and Weeko, and handler Dee Lehman with dog Sasha.<\/strong>
\nChelsea Self \/ Post Independent<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

Garfield Search and Rescue received an anonymous grant last year to help with some travel costs, but on the whole, the handlers do the work because they are passionate about it.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou want to do good, so find something that you love to do, to do good,\u201d Gruys said.<\/p>\n

tphippen@postindependent.com<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

via:: Post Independent<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Search and rescue dog Billy along with handler Jody Gruys prepare to head out for a search during training on Sunday morning. Chelsea Self \/ Post Independent Weeko is a petite 8-year old Golden retriever with flax-colored fur, slender frame and delicate features. And cute. In fact, Weeko means \u201cpretty girl\u201d in Sioux. But don\u2019t […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[160],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1317090","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","category-local-news"],"acf":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-09-06 10:51:12","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"distributor_meta":false,"distributor_terms":false,"distributor_media":false,"distributor_original_site_name":"KSKE Ski Country","distributor_original_site_url":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske","push-errors":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1317090","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1317090"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1317090\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1317109,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1317090\/revisions\/1317109"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1317090"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1317090"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1317090"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}