Dogs to the rescue! Coast Guard trains K-9s for disaster response

MANILA, Philippines (UPDATED) – The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) now has a new batch of dogs that will help respond to emergencies when disaster strikes. 

The new graduates, 17 in all, completed their 10 month-training course at the agency’s K-9 Unit training facility in Taguig City.

They will be sent out to areas where canine units are lacking, with PCG K-9 Group head Commander Nelson Torre with PCG K-9 Group head Commander Nelson Torre specifically mentioning La Union and Palawan in Luzon, Cebu in Visayas, and Zamboanga and Davao in Mindanao as their areas of assignment. 

Eleven dogs have been taught to sniff for explosives. Four of them have been taught to search for narcotics, while two canines are search-and-rescue and cadaver finding dogs, Torre said.

Meanwhile, 20 dogs that have undergone training with the PCG for 6 months to enable them to help respond during disasters are scheduled to graduate in September.

The dogs – 6 months to one year old and mostly males – will be brought to the PCG’s search and rescue (SAR) base in Romblon, said Lieutenant Commander Jane Gesulgon, deputy commander of the PCG’s K-9 Group.

“The training would start in a ball drive. They will get the ball and bite it. That is an indication they are good for SAR training,” Gesulgon said.

Eventually, the canines will also be trained to sniff illegal drugs and explosives, he said.

“In due time, we would be able to train also SAR dogs in maritime search and rescue so they would be familiar in water,” the K-9 Group’s chief added.

The dogs to be trained are Labrador Retrievers, Jack Russels, German Shepherds, Golden Retrievers, and Belgian Malinois. 

After their training, 6 or 7 of them will be deployed to PCG districts in the major island groups.

The PCG has 142 working dogs: 4 for SAR, 39 for narcotics, 98 for explosives, 1 for patrol. The command started employing K-9s in 2001. 

In the aftermath of the magnitude 7.2 earthquake in Bohol province, the PCG’s working dog named Bosh, a Labrador, was instrumental in recovering 4 cadavers. – Rappler.com