Dogs drafted in to help paramedics in water rescue searches

A specialist Scottish Ambulance Service unit which assists water rescues and high-risk searches for missing people is enlisting help from a new source - dogs. Paramedics from the Special Operation Response Team (SORT) have teamed up with a volunteer group called Central K-9 Search and Rescue for a pilot scheme. It focuses on hard-to-reach areas, particularly around water, where searches can be slow and dangerous. Handlers say the dogs can quickly search and make sure large areas are clear. The hope is that by covering ground quickly, they reduce the time it takes to locate someone and allow medically-trained crews to step in sooner. If successful, the scheme could be expanded across Scotland. Christine Wilson still remembers the moment her dog Flash first showed he might be cut out for search work. "He was extremely hyper," she says. "I felt he needed to go to work." What began as a way to channel his energy has turned into something more serious. For training they go out maybe once or twice a week, Christine says. "We work with the dogs in different environments, whether it's beside the water or in the woods," she says. "For the dogs, it still feels like a game. They work for a to