Dumped dog becomes life saver (From Harwich and Manningtree Standard)

Mistley: Dumped dog becomes life saver

12:00pm Thursday 8th November 2012 in News By Helen Barnett

A RESCUE dog could turn from zero to hero after qualifying as a search and rescue animal.

Alison Mercer and her Springer-Labrador cross Bob have passed a test to become a search team to help scour East Anglia for missing people.

Alison, 36, of Kerridge’s Cut, Mistley, trained Bob for nine months on Furze Hill, and is calling for dog owners to clean up after their pets after becoming frustrated at the amount of dog fouling on the land.

She rescued Bob from the Blue Cross in Felixstowe after police couldn’t train it as a sniffer dog.

Bob, aged two and a half, had previously been passed on to the rescue centre after becoming too much for a young family.

He has gone through a rigorous training routine where he is rewarded with his favourite toy when he finds what he is looking for.

They will now volunteer with the Search and Rescue Dog Association as novice rescuers and could be called anywhere in East Anglia region.