The Rescuers With Four Paws—and the Care We Owe Them

• September 29, 2026
• News

They searched where hope was hardest to find. After Venezuela’s earthquakes, dogs working alongside international rescue teams helped locate people beneath collapsed buildings.

CNN’s reporting, carried by KRDO, describes Tsunami, a mixed-breed border collie undertaking his final mission before retirement, and Rambo, whose barking alerted rescuers to signs of life. Mali, from Mexico’s International Topos Rescue Brigade, also located a Maltese dog alive beneath the rubble.

Their work makes the bond between people and animals impossible to overlook. Trust and training become a way through devastation; a dog’s discovery can change the course of a search.

Animals First Aid celebrates these dogs and their handlers. Our gratitude should also invite a wider commitment to animal welfare. A dog who saves lives deserves excellent care—but so does the dog who will never wear a medal, work a rescue site or make the news.

Support the animals still waiting for care through AFA’s causes. Their value does not depend on what they can do for us. The same compassion we feel for these remarkable rescuers can reach an abandoned dog, an injured cat or a caregiver struggling to keep a sanctuary going.

Honour the heroes. Carry that kindness further.

Source: CNN

CNN report republished by KRDO