GTK9 to the Rescue

Becca Parkinson ended up with an avalanche dog by accident. 

In 2007, when Becca was a second-year ski patroller at Grand Targhee, the ski area’s avalanche dog program needed another set of paws. She already owned a labrador, Leo, and the two of them would help “fast-track a rebuild of the program,” she said.

“It's a cool relationship,” Becca said. “You have a partner with a skill you will never have.”

What followed were two seasons of rigorous training. Leo learned to ride on chairlifts and snowmobiles, and chase after patrollers on their skis. He took commands from other handlers, like longtime ski patrol director Joe Calder. Leo would even pose for photos with his adoring fans – and everyone loves an avy dog.

But mostly, Leo played games. His favorite was a variation on hide and seek, where the “hider” is a mock avalanche victim and the “seeker” is a dog-handler team. When finding an avalanche victim is the game, winning can mean the difference between life and death.

“That is exactly how we train the dogs,” Becca said. “We use the play-and-prey drive to teach them the task of finding a human.”

Puppy to pro

Today, the Grand Targhee avalanche dog program, known as GTK9, is a thriving nonprofit. Certified avy dogs go through at least two seasons of foundational training before they’re ready to work. At Targhee, dogs are certified through Colorado Rapid Avalanche Deployment, or C-RAD. Some dogs work for up to a decade.

At least 10 working dogs are on staff this winter, including a few newcomers. Becca’s second avy dog, Ivy, retired this past spring at 12 years old. She came as a puppy and grew up on the snow. So did Becca. 

“The dog is like any other search and rescue colleague,” Becca said. “On patrol we ski powder together, we goof around together, but when it comes down to it, you know how to get down to work, be serious, be professional, do the thing you are trained to do."

Any dog breed can be trained for avalanche work, but traditional hunting and working breeds — labs, other retrievers, shepherds, border collies — tend to do the best. Age matters, too. Ivy’s age gave her a slight advantage over Leo.

“A lot of times your first dog is an experiment,” Becca said. “You don't know what you’re looking for or training for, but then by your second dog you know: This is what I need.”

Dog team

GTK9 is a special breed. Unlike some avy dog programs, where training is subsidized by the ski area, Grand Targhee patrollers pay their own way to becoming handlers. A professional search and rescue dog can cost up to $10,000, according to Search and Rescue Dogs of the United States. Avalanche dogs, with their specialized on-snow experience, can cost exponentially more.

That’s where GTK9 comes in. The nonprofit sells t-shirts and holds fundraisers to pay for training, gear, certification and vet bills. Food is donated by FirstMate and Nulo through a Jackson pet shop, Teton Tails. The ski area is generous with grants.

“This is something Targhee has done really well, and we have a great dog program because of their support, from management to patrol to the community,” Becca said. “Plus, the blood, sweat and tears from the dog handlers." 

Becca’s newest lab, Ada, is one of the new recruits this season. This is the handler’s third generation of dogs, and, she admitted, it might be her last.

“I've had dogs my whole life but the dogs I've trained for avalanche rescue are different,” she said. “It’s one of the hardest parts, when they stop working. You know how much they love doing it.”

Be Avalanche Aware