interviewing bob Calkins Search and rescue Dog trainer Question 1 How did you get started in your career? A: I had always wanted to volunteer in search and rescue, and had done some communications for a SAR team in Seattle. (I’m also a ham radio operator.) My wife and I had previously owned a Great Dane, which would not be a good search dog unless your couch went missing. By sheer chance, I ended up with a golden retriever puppy named Sierra who tested well and we got started. Question 2 How do search dogs work? A: Search dogs work in a couple of ways. Sometimes we give the dog a scent article from the missing person and they follow their path. This works best in populated areas where there are many other human scents around. These dogs work on-lead with the handler right behind. Dogs trained this way are called “trailing dogs.” Out in the woods, we generally don’t give a scent article, and the dogs search for any human