142 Days to go

A little late start this morning. It’s cross training day, the sun is out so I am thinking some rollerblading with the girls after work today. Feel free to join me if you like.

Since it’s Friday, since we all need some good inspiring story to make us feel a little bit better, I am going to share Pearl’s story. Once a rescue, now a rescuer.



Sharing the story from SDF’s website. Pearl’s early years were troubled ones. Her first owner wasn’t home much, so Pearl frequently would jump the fence of their home and go looking for fun. Inevitably she would be picked up by animal control, and after paying the “bailout” fee one too many times, the owner saw the hopelessness of the situation and surrendered her to the local county shelter.

Canine behaviorist Jack Cumbra frequently visited the shelter to pick out dogs that would make good family pets for the High Sierra Animal Rescue. Jack had seen Pearl there many times before, having passed her up because she was just too “hyper.” She was “bouncing off the walls,” he said. But this time he saw the opportunity in her over-the-top attitude and thought she might have the makings to become a Search Dog.

“Within five minutes I knew we had a winner,” said SDF Lead Trainer Pluis Davern. “This dog just couldn’t sit still. All she could think about was finding and retrieving the toy. If the toy went into dense shrubs, Pearl would barrel in and find it.” After completing her training in July 2008, Pearl was partnered with Captain Ron Horetski of the Los Angeles County Fire Department.

Ron and Pearl got called to one of the biggest disasters: Haiti. On January 14, 2010, Ron and Pearl were deployed to Port-au-Prince. They searched for 16 days, combing the wreckage in search of victims still alive under acres of concrete and debris.Together with six other Canine Disaster Search Teams trained by the Search Dog Foundation, Ron and Pearl helped bring 12 people to safety.

Watch Pearl and Ron, Pearl was chosen to be the ASPCA dog of the year.

Happy Friday people. I fulfilled my duty, I hope your heart feels a little warmer now.

xo