Howllo Fellow Basset Hound and Retrieved Lovers….
RETRIEVED
Moxie, 13, from Winthrop, Massachusetts, arrived with her handler, Mark Aliberti, at the World Trade Center on the evening of September 11 and searched the site for eight days
This wonderful book by Charlotte Dumas is spell binding.
In 2001, in the chaotic hours and days following the September 11 attacks, nearly one hundred trained search dogs and their handlers were deployed by FEMA to assist in the rescue efforts at the World Trade Center in New York and the Pentagon in Washington, D.C. Enlisted from a network of 26 task forces in 18 states around the U.S., these dogs worked around the clock locating survivors in the rubble, alongside firemen and other teams sorting through the debris.
Guinness, 15, from Highland, California, started work at the site with Sheila McKee on the morning of September 13 and was deployed at the site for 11 days
At the time, Dutch photographer Charlotte Dumas, was intrigued by several newspaper photographs of the animals in action—a dog being transported in a stokes basket on cables suspended high over the wreckage; a dog intently searching while maneuvering over enormous bend beams; dogs receiving eye drops after and in between shifts—powerful, poignant images that stayed with her for years afterward. But what were the fates of these dogs once the rescue ended? Where were they now?
Tara, 16, from Ipswich, Massachusetts, arrived at the World Trade Center on the night of the 11th. The dog and her handler Lee Prentiss were there for eight days
Kaiser, 12, pictured at home in Indianapolis, Indiana, was deployed to the World Trade Center on September 11 and searched tirelessly for people in the rubble
In early 2011, nearing the ten year anniversary of the attacks, Dumas succeeded in locating and visiting 15 of these dogs, photographing them in and around their homes throughout the U.S., where they all still live with their handlers. In what has become Dumas’ signature style—thoughtfully composed portraits, shot in medium format at close range—the photographs offer an intimate view into the everyday lives of these working dogs, united now in the vulnerability of old age as they were once united in a common purpose.
Kaiser, 12, pictured at home in Indianapolis, Indiana, was deployed to the World Trade Center on September 11 and searched tirelessly for people in the rubble
Retrieved adds a unique and timely element to Dumas’ ongoing exploration of the complex and often vital roles animals play in our lives.
I cannot wait to buy this book. What grand heroes these rescue dogs are.
More about loving this book later….Cat, Chaps and Emma
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