Ski Patrol At Tahoe Donner Downhill Ski Area Gets Rescue Dog

TRUCKEE (CBS13) - The week of the New Year's holiday is one of the busiest for local ski resorts, and that means search and rescue teams are keeping a close eye on skier safety.

We were introduced to the newest member of the ski patrol team at Tahoe Donner Downhill Ski Area.

It's not every day you see a dog riding a ski lift. But this golden retriever named Tucker isn't going skiing, he's part of the ski patrol team here at Tahoe Donner resort.

Tucker, the 10-year-old golden retriever, loves to be the center of attention and he can also save your life.

"A friendly dog who loves his job. He's up every morning ready to go to work," said Ski Patrol Director Ted Tank.

Tucker is an important part of the ski patrol team at Tahoe Donner Downhill Resort. His nose knows best when it comes to finding someone buried in the snow.

"Snow is porous, and as humans, we have a strong scent. And when someone is buried in an avalanche, that scent eventually percolates up," said Tank.

Tank, says Tucker uses scent to sniff out someone in trouble, and he can do it better and faster than any human can.

"His nose is about 1,000 times more sensitive than a human nose," said Tank.

And for Tucker, digging in the snow is less like a job and more like a game where the glove is the reward.

"We use a glove for two reasons: One, if they were to come along to a hand they would expose it, dig it up so that the rest of the rescuers would know. And two: If they see a hand, they can try and pull the person up through the snow without a human being around to facilitate that.

Besides search and rescue, Tucker's other role at the resort is to be a teacher to the youngest of skiers.

"He's a very good representative of avalanche safety and avalanche awareness -- especially for kids -- for getting that education going early when they begin skiing," said Tank.

Tucker is by far not the first ski patrol dog. They have been used for decades for search-and-rescue missions.

An increasing number of local ski patrol teams now use the dogs.

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