A new relationship with animals, nature and each other.

Search and Rescue, Canine Style

Animals at Ground Zero

Heroes in all shapes, sizes, and breeds
The dogs and their people who risked their lives to save others

Meet One of the Dog Teams
“We were a team, and if something wasn’t safe for the dogs, we would say.”

Pier 40: Heart of the Operation
How the animal rescue teams came together

The Four-Legged Heroes
How Dorado led his blind person to safety

Search & Rescue, Canine Style
The Suffolk Country crew sets up the MASH unit

Where Are They Now?
The dogs of 9/11 – 10 years later

Pets in Peril
Tweety-Pye gets left behind

Diary of a K-9 Team
Paul Morgan and Cody join the FEMA team

Preparing for Animal Care in a Disaster
A few quick tips to help keep you safe

If You’re an Animal Organization
Working together to build an emergency coalition

A Snapshot of the E-mails
“I am an active duty Marine. My 10 cats and 2 dogs will not have a home if we go to war…”

Other Websites

A Memorial Roster
Many of the dogs who worked at Ground Zero suffered serious health problems and passed away in the years that followed.

A Tribute
A preview to radio talk-show host Steve Dale’s book called Dog Heroes of September 11th: A Tribute to America’s Search and Rescue Dogs.

Staffed only by volunteers, the Suffolk County canine crew’s regular job was to investigate animal abuse. But recently, they had received funding for a MASH unit, a mobile spay/neuter hospital.

Roy Gross, chief of the rescue department, took the call from NYPD Emergency Services. The MASH unit was needed, with all their expertise and staff, to help with the rescue dogs. Veterinarians, vet techs, and volunteers were mobilized from all over the city.

Half a dozen tents were quickly erected.

“The dogs would come out of the site covered in ash and debris,” Gross recalled. “We hydrated them with IV fluids, rinsed the dust out of their eyes, bathed them, gave them antibiotics, cleaned and stitched wounds, and fitted them with booties.

“In just the first five days, we treated over 200 dogs. I believe there were about 300 dogs in the perimeter. Some of them came in, and they’d been working so hard, they were about to collapse. I saw one come in that we treated and hydrated, and the dog was just pulling his handler back to the pile – like he just knew he had to go in there and do his job.”

Next: Where Are They Now?