When a child goes missing in the woods or a hiker fails to return home, every minute counts. That’s when they step in: the search and rescue dog teams of our member organisations. They are trained, certified and ready to respond — in their home countries and across borders, 365 days a year. Their mission: to find missing people in the wilderness, quickly and reliably.

But our dogs are not born heroes. Behind every successful search are years of training, patience and countless hours practising in all kinds of terrain. To prove they are truly ready, each team must regularly demonstrate their ability to perform under the toughest conditions. Just like at the IRO Mission Readiness Test at the end of May in Stubenberg, Austria. For five days, 35 teams from across Europe were pushed to their limits.

This test shows whether dog and handler truly work as one. Within 15 minutes they must be ready to deploy — no matter if it’s the middle of the night, pouring with rain or after hours of waiting. During the day, each team searches two different forest areas, each up to six hectares in size. At night, the dogs search along a three-kilometre forest path for missing people, thoroughly checking both sides within a radius of about ten metres. For each search area, there is only one hour to cover every corner.

However, a successful search requires more than just a good nose. Handlers must also demonstrate their ability to navigate difficult terrain, use GPS confidently and administer first aid to their dog if needed. Our classifiers accompany each team every step of the way, often covering over 30 kilometres a day to ensure that all standards are met.

For our search and rescue teams, the test means continuing to learn, to train and to trust each other completely, whatever happens. For our organisation, it provides proof that each team is fully prepared for when they are called upon. And for everyone who supports us, it means being part of a life-saving mission. Every contribution helps to ensure that our dogs can continue to find what others cannot.

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