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Mid-Atlantic Dogs

Search & Rescue

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About

ABOUT US

Incorporated in 1990, Mid-Atlantic D.O.G.S. (MA/D) is an experienced and dynamic search and rescue organization. We are committed to providing skilled canine search and rescue teams to missing person emergencies. Our members are prepared to respond 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

Mid-Atlantic D.O.G.S. (MA/D) has dog/handler teams located in various geographic locations throughout the states of Maryland and West Virginia. MA/D strives to provide quick response for search assistance in Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia, Pennsylvania, and the District of Columbia. In Virginia, we operate as a resource under a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Virginia Department of Emergency Management. MA/D is also a member of VASARCO, the Virginia Search and Rescue Council, Inc.

MA/D teams respond to approximately 40 requests for assistance per year. In addition to volunteering considerable amounts of time each month, MA/D members supply their own equipment, use personal vehicles to get to and from searches, training exercises, and demos. They pay for all their dog’s expenses and often use their vacation time from work to be available for searches. Operational members are trained in wilderness navigation, survival, search and rescue techniques, crime scene preservation and first aid.

QUALIFICATIONS


MA/D personnel undergo extensive training and evaluation before they are designated as operational.  See “Join Us” for more information.

HOW SEARCH DOGS ARE DEPLOYED


MA/D only responds to requests for assistance from official agencies. Each dog/handler team is assigned an area to work. Handlers use wind, terrain, and subject characteristics to effectively search the sector. Tasks are systematically assigned to cover the entire area. Dog teams can work immediately after foot searchers have left an area. They can be coordinated with other search resources.

HOW AIR SCENTING DOGS WORK

An air-scenting search dog is trained to scan the air currents for the scent of a human being. The dog locates the source of the scent and indicates it to the handler. A search dog will alert on any human scent – alive or dead, even underwater in a specific area. The dog is not restricted to the missing person’s track and can search effectively days or even weeks after the track has been obliterated. The dogs can work well in areas that have been “contaminated” by previous searchers. They can search day or night in most kinds of weather, including rain and snow. In addition to wilderness and undeveloped tracts, the dogs can be effective in rural or suburban areas. They can search groves of trees, overgrown vacant lots and fields, abandoned buildings, junkyards, and city parks. They are especially effective where human sight is most limited – in the dark, in dense woods, heavy brush, or debris.


 
HOW WATER DOGS WORK
 

Trained dogs are capable of detecting human scent from under water. They can work in moving water or still lakes or ponds. The dogs can work out of a boat or from the land alongside the water.

 

DEMOS


MA/D members also offer a variety of informational and educational programs as a community service to schools, service clubs, and other organizations. The programs include how the dogs are trained, how to avoid getting lost, what to do if you are. In many cases, members are qualified to present the Hug-a-tree program.

Support

SUPPORT US

 EIN 52-1659829

Donate through Combined Federal Campaign (CFC)

If you are a federal employee or military personnel, you can donate to Mid-Atlantic D.O.G.S. through the Combined Federal Campaign (CFC) of the National Capital Area.

https://cfcgiving.opm.gov/offerings

CFC # code, used for making designations: 78182

Donate with Amazon Smile

To add or change your charitable organization to Mid-Atlantic D.O.G.S. on Amazon Smile:

Sign in to smile.amazon.com on your desktop or mobile phone browser.
From your desktop, go to Your Account from the navigation at the top of any page, and then select the option to Change your Charity. Or, from your mobile browser, select Change your Charity from the options at the bottom of the page.


Copy and paste Mid-Atlantic Dogs, Inc. into the Search box. 

Donate through justgiving

https://www.justgiving.com/midatlanticdogsinc

Donate by check

If you would like to make a tax deductible donation, please mail a check payable to Mid-Atlantic D.O.G.S. to:

Mid-Atlantic D.O.G.S.
P. O. Box 841
Rockville, MD  20848 

Mid-Atlantic D.O.G.S. is a 501(c)(3) organization and receives tax-deductible donations from individuals, organizations, and corporations.   We are composed entirely of volunteers who give of their time, knowledge, and skills without compensation so that “others may live”.   Funds received are used to support our mission by supplying our operational K-9 teams with communication devices, safety equipment, and when possible, for reimbursement of mileage incurred while responding to search missions; by supporting our members in their training; and for material / brochures for our SAR awareness and SAR prevention programs.

Mid-Atlantic D.O.G.S. would like to thank all the individuals, organizations, and corporations that have supported us throughout the years with donations of funds and equipment to assist us in meeting the needs of the community whenever there is a person lost, missing, or trapped.

Contact
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