“VISDDAC trains to respond to international disasters requiring the use of highly trained disaster K9s and their handlers.”

Vancouver Island Search and Disaster Dogs Association Canada (VISDDAC) are a team of dedicated K9s and their handlers who train in order to respond to disasters.

Search and Rescue K9s are trained to use their acute olfactory sense to be able to detect the presence of a person trapped or buried in rubble.

VISDDAC is a member of the International Search and Rescue Dog Organisation (IRO) based in Austria. The IRO sets standards that K9s must meet in order to be certified. IRO certified dogs can be deployed to disasters to support and supplement United Nations International Search and Rescue Advisory Group certified teams.

K9s have an amazing sense of smell.

K9s have a much stronger sense of smell than humans. By harnessing this ability and training the K9 to use their nose, search and rescue teams are able to detect, locate and rescue trapped victims quicker.