In the aftermath of the deadly 2004 tsunami in Thailand, dogs were called in to help coordinate with Search and Rescue (SAR) teams searching for both survivors and bodies of the dead. But after several tests, dogs trained only for detection failed. A Mr Suthikiat Sopanik was so motivated by the lack of canine search dogs deployed in the aftermath of the 2004 Tsunami that he founded the Thailand Rescue Dog Association in 2005 under the patronage of the General Chatichai Choonhaven foundation, and that was the beginning of Thai-RDA.  The elite Thai-RDA “K9s” are now part of Thailand’s Search and Rescue group, and while any shape or size dog is welcomed, 90% of the dogs are purebred dogs, including a Dutch Shepherd, Standard Poodle, English Setter, and Chihuahua.

And now we wildly digress for one simple reason. Dog people travel. We are judges, we are health care professionals attending conferences, we are people attending dog shows in other countries, we are tourists, and we are tourists who are may be importing a dog from the country we visit. It’s important to recognize weather phenomenon of the countries we visit, and that includes the warnings signs of an avalanche, the rumble of an earthquake, and yes, the signs of a tsunami. The December 26, 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami had the energy of 23,000 Hiroshima-type atomic bombs, and like many other tsunamis, the first wave of this one was not the most dangerous, and it didn’t look it. A tsunami, however,  is a “wave train” that can come in surges five minutes to an hour apart, and subsequent waves are killers.

It also pays to pay attention to the little things (and to little people). The 2004 tsunami that resulted in at least 227,898 deaths was detected by animals minutes before it happened. People in Indonesia noticed dogs, goats, and other animals fleeing for high ground, and very few animal bodies were found afterwards. It was also a 10-year-old British child, Tilly Smith, whose geography lessons helped her save 100 tourists on a Thai beach when she noticed waves suddenly begin to recede, a warning sign she’d learned about in school. She told her mother that the beach was about to be struck by a tsunami, and the parents listened to their child. They alerted other vacationers to clear the beach, and in so doing, saved their lives. For her alertness, Tilly was named Child of the Year by readers of a French children’s newspaper.

Photo of Thailand Rescue Dog Association (Thai-RDA)