Park City, UT – Park City Mountain Resort ski patroller Andy VanHouten, and two and a half year-old yellow Labrador Retriever, Zeke, recently returned to Park City after traveling to Switzerland for an intensive search and rescue training program.n“Traveling to Switzerland, was an amazing experience and opportunity for Zeke and I”, said VanHouten. “We have been able to bring back a wealth of knowledge to share with the other dog teams both here at Park City Mountain Resort as well as other teams across the Wasatch.”

While in Switzerland, VanHouten and Zeke completed seven days of training with some of the elite search and rescue dog teams from around Europe, performing a number of drills and rescue scenarios focusing on several different components of search and rescue, including new beacon techniques, probe lines, and advanced shovel techniques for extremely deep burials. Both handler and dog were flown into test sites to practice working with the distraction of helicopters overhead to simulate a real life experience.

The avalanche rescue dog program at Park City Mountain Resort is an integral component of the emergency search and rescue plan both at the Resort and throughout the Wasatch Range. The team works closely with Wasatch Backcountry Rescue, a non-profit agency, and area sheriff’s departments. The Resort’s five dog teams train and test regularly to be ready for immediate deployment in the event of an avalanche anywhere in Northern Utah.