Manila: With her owner holding her leash, Philippine pooch Hazel sniffs through rubble in a simulated search for survivors of a major earthquake in Manila.
Image Credit: AFP
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Hazel is participating in a programme training pet dogs and their owners in search and rescue so they can be deployed in the aftermath of a disaster.
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Every Sunday, volunteer trainers put around 46 mongrels and purebreds of all sizes through their paces at a facility in suburban Manila where they learn to find people, scale ladders, and bound over wooden structures.
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When disasters strike the archipelago nation, Philippine disaster agencies have already deployed search and rescue dogs.
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However, there are concerns that there might not be enough of them if a major earthquake were to hit the sprawling metropolis of Manila.
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Manila is vulnerable to quakes due to its location on the West Valley Fault and its proximity to the Manila Trench off the main island of Luzon.
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A handler patting her dog. Seismologists believe the movement of either one could trigger a major earthquake in the city of more than 13 million people that could kill tens of thousands.
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The MMDA K-9 Corps volunteer group has trained around 700 pet dogs since the programme began in 2016.
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It aims to train at least 3,400 pet dogs in search and rescue across the city.
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Dogs must complete at least 12 training sessions before being deployed in real-life disaster response operations.
Image Credit: AFP
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