Among those involved in search- and-rescue operations at the World Trade Center after September 11 were several dogs and their handlers. Although corporate pilot Roseanne Perini was not available for the rescue efforts at the WTC disaster site because she was with her New York-based Gulfstream IV, she has been a search-and-rescue dog handler since 1998. She and her dog, Jack, a German shepherd assigned to her, are members of the Adirondack Rescue Dog Association, which specializes in training AirScent dogs.
AirScent dogs are typically German shepherds, paired with a motivated and capable volunteer handler who has undertaken a three-year training program. The dog is handled off-lead, within sight of the handler, and seeks human scent carried on wind currents as the method to locate a missing person, as opposed to the traditional system of using bloodhounds to follow a scent left by a person on a path or trail.
