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סמינר לכלבי עבודה בישראל עם מומחה מבלגיה, ויק ווילמס 15-18 ינואר

1/8/2017

סמינר על כלבי עבודה, גורים ובוגרים עם ויק ווילמס מומחה בנלאומי שופט מוסמך אפ סי איי- מבלגיה

15-18 לינואר, באפרת, שלושה ימים עמוסים בידע תיאורטי ועם ופרקטיקה מבצעית בשטח. בעלות של 275 ש"ח ליום בלבד (250 ש"ח ליום למי, שנרשם עוד היום).

מר ויק ווילמס עם יותר מ-40 שנות ניסיון באימון, גידול והכשרת כלבי ספורט ועבודה כולל כלבי משטרה ברחבי העולם. הסמינר יתנהל בשבוע הבא 15-18 לינואר (שני, שלישי ורביעי). בעלות 275 ש"ח ליום. למי שנרשם עוד היום בעלות של 250 ש"ח ליום. לפרטים 0544876709
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יום שני הסמינר משעה10.30 בבוקר עד 18.30 בערב באחוזת הכלבים - הנושאים : בבוקר משמעט, תיקפה, הרחה וגישוש לגורים. אחר הצהרים משמעט ותקיפה לכלבים בוגרים.

יום שלישי: 18.00-11.00 הנושאים: גישוש והרחה לכלבים בוגרים

יום רביעי: .11.00 עד 18.00 כלבי הרחה מכל מיני סוגים והשלמות תקיפה וגישוש

Achuzat Haklavim in Waze.אחוזת הכלבים בוויז
דרך נחל אשכול ליד מגרשי הטניס באפרת- ליותר פרטים 0526919989

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Seminar for service dogs in Israel, pups and adult dogs with European Expert, Vic Wilms, Sunday Jan. 15 to Wednesday Jan. 18, in Efrat

1/8/2017

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Vic Wilms, a world renowned dog expert from Belgium will be giving a seminar in Israel on service dogs (tracking, discipline, bite work, sniffing and more for pups and adult dogs), under the auspices of the Israel Dog Unit (IDU).

Sunday Jan. 15 to Wednesday Jan. 18, in Efrat

Vic Willms is known for his ability to help handlers reach high ranking scores (BH, IPO 1-2-3 in competitions as well as tracking dogs, and helped police forces around the world to achieve high standard service Sniffing and patrol dogs.
- Judged many IPO trials in Belgium, Holland, Germany and U.S.A.

- Gave many seminars and workshops for I.P.O., police, drugs, explosives, personal protection, security, guard dogs in Belgium, Holland, U.S.A. and Egypt.

- trouble-shooting behavioral problems

Cost for 3 day seminar only 275 shekels per day, or pay 650 shekels in advance and attend as many days as you wish. Space is limited, so call now to reserve. Seminar free for all I.D.U volunteers. CALL NOW 0544876709

Monday Jan. 16
Pup segment
10.30 AM Theoretical Lecture on working with puppies at different stages, exposure and socialization, discipline, sniffing, tracking and attack work.
11.15 Practical discipline and attack workshop with pups
12.30 return to classroom theoretical (movie).
13.15 Lunch (bring your own sandwiches or buy sandwiches on premises - light refreshments will be served).
14.15 tracking practical in the field/
15.30 Return to classroom for summary of the day's material re pups, questions - trouble shooting puppy problems and tea.

Adult dog segment
16.00 PM: Adult dogs -Lecture/Seminar on attack work. Theory of prey, play attack aggression, proper bite work, troubleshooting problems for different type of service dogs that need different level bite skills. Detection, seeking finding and attacking on and off leash
17.30 Practical discipline and attack work with adult dogs

Tuesday - Jan 17
11 AM lecture on tracking
11.30 continuation on tracking, movie and questions
12.30 Lunch
13.30 Practical tracking exercises in the field
16.00 beginning of special sniffing detection segment, lecture (movie) Begin practical sniffing work.
17.00 day summary and questions

Wednesday - Jan 18.
Continuation of Bomb sniffing, and other special sniffing detection theory and practical (and continuation of tracking, discipline and attack work - depends on the participants).

11 - 18 PM (with breaks, bring your own sandwiches sandwiches can be bought on premises)

Please note the schedule is subject to change based on weather conditions and based on the needs and the preferences of the participants present.

Achuzat Haklavim in Waze.
Down Rechov Nachal Eshkol (near the tennis courts) or call 0526919989 for more directions.

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-Updates re recent searches by IDU - Israel Dog Unit

11/13/2016

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1-Updates re recent searches by IDU - Israel Dog Unit
Tuesday night, Nov. 8th 2016 (L’Minyanam) the Israel Dog Unit (IDU) received a request from the Israeli police in Rosh HaAyin to help with the search for a missing 27 year old autistic “haredi” man who resides in a hostel on Etzel Street in Rosh Haayin. The man had left a packing center that employs him in Petach Tiqwa at 9:00 AM on Jabotinsky Street in Petach Tiqwa, Monday morning, never to have been seen again. The man, who never went missing for more than a few hours in the past, was already missing for more than 24 hours when we were called into the search. He allegedly was reported to have regularly walked home, all of the way through the fields between Petach Tikva and Rosh Haayin, alongside the highway 483 and then to cut through the tree-line and fields alongside highway 444 that borders on Etzel Street.

We were told that the police had sent up a helicopter over the area, (but for whatever reason, perhaps the fog, the police were not satisfied with the helicopter search). We happened to be in Petach Tikva when we got the call, having a handful of dogs and some equipment, and needing to pass through the area on the way back to Tapuach, where we could get more dogs, volunteers and equipment. We were confident that Hatzalah and ZAKA would continue with the urban part of the search near his work-place and so we drove through the route near the fields where we later commenced the search with the dogs, at sunrise Wednesday morning. While it was clear to us, that he would more likely still be in close proximity to his work place in Petach Tiqva, we realized that if, G-d forbid, he was wounded and laying in the fields, he would unlikely survive too much longer as the weather was heating up, and without water he would not last more than 3-4 days. We now entered day two, since he was reported missing. Time was of the essence.

We met with the police officer in charge of the search and with the parents of the missing person at the police station. The police allowed us to run the investigation and to interview the family. Ironically, the police officers placed in charge of any given search are usually the highest ranking officer on duty at that time in the given precinct where the missing-person-complaint was filed. He is often not an expert in conducting searches for missing people and usually runs investigations about theft, rape, murder or any other current files placed on his desk. The officer sat there as I grilled the parents with the relevant questions to build the profile of the missing person and to decide where to start the search. After I finished the questioning, the officer commended us and said that he had learned a lot from our questions and that he had no further questions. The police were visibly thrilled that we were on the scene. They don’t actually search, but at best drive around on the streets or trails with their jeeps. We also shared with them our new technology to manage searches, in the form of a new smartphone application that enables us to interact with all of our dog handlers on a search, where we can watch at the command center the movement of all of our searchers. Each searcher is seen on the screen in their own color. All movements are merged simultaneously with all the people who have searched on a map.

We now had to set out for the actual search. We set up camp near Etzel Street across from a gas station, adjacent to a bus stop not presently in use due to construction. I was excited to start the search especially in view of the fact that we had another unresolved case of an elderly Alzheimer patient who went missing from that exact spot three years ago. While 3 years is a long time, we thought we might be lucky and come across some lead or bones connected to the other case as well to help bring him to a proper Jewish burial. Naturally our priority was to save a life, and find the younger missing man who would hopefully still be alive. However, you never know what we might come across. One of the elderly man’s sons, a dayan – a rabbinic judge in Jerusalem, calls us from time to time asking us to look for his father. We never have much of a chance due to the influx of urgent life-or-death new cases.

Once we set up our make-shift command center, the police together with Yaniv Finkel the Deputy Police Chief of the Rosh HaAyin precinct came to visit us and to observe our techniques, dogs in action and learn more about our proprietary search application.
See below the pics attached. We also brought along our drone to help in the search of the fields.

E.M.F. Our Missing Person Found, Alive-And-Well

2-GREAT NEWS - A DIFFERENT MISSING PERSON FOUND, THAN K G-D

While we were searching a nearby forest in Kiryat Atta, for Shlomo Didya, we got a call from Kiryat Atta police (It is all meshamayim) that a 57 year old mentally retarded woman had gone missing in none other than Kiryat Atta. Dudi our IDU – Israel Dog Unit Chief of Operations and Haifa Commander, left us to check out the details of the new case. Within a matter of minutes, without exaggeration, I got a call from Dudi to come immediately, he had found the woman. I arrived on the scene before the police to see the family and the police congratulate Dudi, and to see the wonderful reunification of the family, as tears of joy trickled down their faces. See photo of the woman and her brother walking away, after Dudi’s magnificent finding and rescue of the woman who was wandering about aimlessly, confused in a nearby field.
Well, we did not find Didya but we did, at least, find another missing person. We will have to return if we can to resume the Didya search.
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3- NEW MISSING PEOPLE -Please see the two attached files of two new missing people. AND PLEASE SEND THESE PICS ANYWHERE AND EVERYWHERE ON AND OFFLINE – FACEBOOK AND OTHER SOCIAL MEDIA NETWORKS

One of the new missing people is from Afula and the other an American woman studying to be a nurse in Haifa, who had a breakdown of some sort and went missing. She has no relatives in Israel and a friend reported her missing when she did not show up for classes. A note of distress was found and it is feared that she might have harmed herself. It is likely that we will soon commence the search for this nurse-in-training later today in Haifa. This case has areas that overlap other unresolved cases as well (Neve Shannan).
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4- It is imperative to understand- Some of these unsolved cases may lead us to Arab terrorist perpetrators

There are hundreds of serious cases of missing people every year in Israel of the 4000 cases reported. In many of the most serious cases there is no one other than IDU - the Israel Dog Unit to conduct the search in the depth of nearby wilderness. Some of these cases lead us to areas where there are Arab gangs and tribes and we believe that there may be foul play and nationalist motives that could explain some of these disappearances. When we search there are many mitzvoth involved. Naturally, to find and rescue those who are still alive. However, it is also a great mitzvah to find those who may no longer be amongst the living to bring them to a proper Jewish burial, especially where there is none other to perform the “Meit Mitzva”. And if on the way, we can help uncover a gang of terrorists and solve murder cases, and to prevent future kidnappings and murders, this too, is a great mitzvah. We have already found the body of a man who was shot to death.
Please send the photos of the two new missing people and please consider volunteering for the Israel Dog Unit, where you can learn how to search and also learn to be a dog handler for a SAR search and rescue dog. We have dorm facilities for those who wish to learn and to volunteer.

TO DONATE, much needed CONTRIBUTIONS CAN BE SENT TO Maginei Eretz Lmaan Hazulat, POBox 6592 Jerusalem, Israel 91060

Visit our website
www.israel-civilian-k9-unit.org

To make a long story short, the day came and the day left, and our missing person had still not been found. We opened our folding beds up to get some sleep late Wednesday night to resume the search Thursday morning. We bought a second-hand bicycle from a garage-sale near the hostel, which was quite useful on the search. Thursday morning we learned that our missing person was found in Petach Tiqva, not far from where he had gone missing, 3 days after his disappearance. I was not sorry that spent the time searching the fields. I was happy he was found in the city. I would have been much more sorry had he been found a week later, dead in the fields.

OFF TO ANOTHER SEARCH

In the meantime Freddy and Shimon were on their way to help with the search. Our plans were to continue on to Haifa to finish with the search for Shlomo Didya, who had gone missing weeks ago in Haifa but who we had yet to find. We had a number of areas that we still wanted to search with cadaver dogs. However, we were all exhausted from the Rosh HaAyin search. Thus, we sent Shimon and Fred to conduct the search in Haifa through the night and we planned on setting off Thursday morning to help them, if there were still places left to search. We ended up leaving for Haifa and searching until about 1 AM Friday morning, with no results. We still have more to do in Haifa and the search is time-sensitive, while not as much a priority as searching for a person who may still be alive and in need of rescue. However, it is still important to recover a body as soon as possible since there may be little or nothing left of the body by now, as animals are known to eat people in the wilderness, sometimes within a matter of weeks.

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FUNDS ARE NEEDED. OUR UNIT DOES THE IMPOSSIBLE LEADING THE UNTOLD BATTLE OF THOSE WHO HAVE BEEN FORGOTTEN OR FORSAKEN- THE LOST JEWS OF ISRAEL. OUR UNIT ENGAGES IN MORE IN-DEPTH SEARCHES THAN THE ARMY, POLICE AND FIRE DEPARTMENT COMBINED. That is a fact. Despite the fact that we are under-funded receiving zero government aid, we continue to operate and never turn down an emergency call for help. The same is true with our Defense Department that raises security dogs for "settlements" in Yesha and for towns throughout Israel. For many Jews our security dogs are their first and last line of defense against terrorists. We have succeeded in preventing many terrorist attacks over our past 16 years of existence.

We have old vehicles that must be replaced, dogs and volunteers who must be fed and maintained, need new equipment and the list goes on . This is clearly a mitzva which is being neglected and which will not be done by others. The local Rabbis, leaders of the local municiplaities and police, army and security chiefs have reccomended supporting our life-saving services. Please consider doing so. It costs no less than 5000 dollars to prepare each and every fully trained service dog, whether it is a security dog or a SAR dog. It costs no less than 10000-15000 dollars per month to maintain the unit. It will cost us no less than 50,000 dollars to purchase newer more reliable emergency response vehicles. It will cost us no less than 30,000 dollars to sponsor a much needed additional drone with night-vision heat-detection capabilities. It will cost us 30,000 dollars to expand our kennels and to build additional dormitory facilities that are much needed. We could use all of the help that we can get at this time.

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5-Dog Training schedule over the next two weeks

Thursday Nov. 17th:
Training with Zhenya with defense dogs and search and rescue dogs as follows:
Gush Etzyon at 10 AM, in Tapuach at 4:00 PM.

Tuesday Nov. 22:
Training in Gush Etzyon 10AM, (private dog show in Sde Bar 2:00 PM, and training in Kfar Tapuach at 5:00 PM

Please confirm your participation NOW. And then, once again, please call before you set off for the training on the day of the training, to confirm that everything is still on schedule, 0544876709.

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Israeli earthquake - not if, but when?

11/7/2016

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The country is severely ill-prepared. You can help change that.

Last week on Nov. 2, 16, The Israel National Emergency Committee testified before the Knesset’s Security and Foreign Affairs Committee. If there would be a severe earthquake in Israel today (something experts predict will occur in near future, as every 90 years or so, Israel experiences severe quakes, the last one devastating Tiberias and other Northern Israeli cities), approximately 7000 people would be killed, 8600 severely wounded, 170,000 left homeless, and 9500 people would be trapped under the rubble of collapsed buildings.

The Head of the Security and Foreign Affairs Committee, M.K. Avi Dichter, responded, shocked, “This amount of dead and of people trapped who can’t speak, means 100,000 Israelis waiting to know what will come of their loved ones. The nation of Israel will not be able to sustain this. You need to decide who will be called upon to give answers.”

How true this sad state of affairs is when it comes to Israel taking basic steps now, that could help tremendously when an earthquake hits Israel G-d forbid, or if many buildings should collapse due to missile and rocket attacks. We have enjoyed many miracles in recent wars. One must not rely on miracles. The Hamas, Hizbullah and who knows who else have hundreds of thousands of missiles and rockets aimed at Tel Aviv and other major Israeli centers. If Israel is hesitant to take the necessary steps to distance the threats emanating from Lebanon and Gaza, One would at least hope that Israel and Jews world-wide would be eager to support the efforts of such groups as the IDU – Israel Dog Unit, training and preparing dogs and handlers to deal with such a scenario where we would need to find and extricate people from under collapsed buildings as quickly as we can, while they may still be holding on to life.

I am aware of the efforts taken by the army and the fire department to respond to an earthquake. It is well known that dogs can and will play a central role in detecting where live people may be trapped under the rubble as well as G-d forbid where the scent of dead bodies are located. The IDF has less than 2 dozen such dogs. Dozens if not hundreds more will be needed.
There is one civilian organization known as YAKAL - the Israel Dog Unit that is trying its best to ready specially trained dogs and personnel to respond with these dogs to such an emergency. The Israel Dog Unit (IDU) is working around the clock in this regard and also is involved in searching daily for missing people in Israel as well as breeding, training and deploying security dogs in Judea, Samaria and throughout the land of Israel.

The unit is in great need of funds to maintain operations and training - to prepare dogs and volunteer handlers in the proper use of the dogs. G-d forbid, if and when the earthquake erupts; it will be too late to start to finance the type of massive operation that is needed. NOW IS THE TIME TO READY VEHICLES, DOGS, and EQUIPMENT THAT CAN AND WILL EFFECTIVELY RESPOND AND SAVE MANY LIVES IN ISRAEL, G-d willing. Incidentally, buildings could G-d forbid collapse due to missile and rocket attacks or due to gas explosions in buildings as well. We all saw how ill-equipped Israel was to respond to the recent collapse of the parking lot in Ramat Gan. We also learned firsthand, while searching for the three missing boys who were kidnapped, killed and buried in Beit Kahil, two years ago, just how needed our dogs were in the search. We learn each and every day just how needed our dogs are in the search for missing people in Israel. In many of these cases we are the only ones searching in the depth of the wilderness for missing people.

OUR UNIT IS IN DESPERATE NEED OF FUNDS TO CONTINUE TO OPERATE AND TO GROW TO MEET THE GREAT CHALLENGES THAT THREATEN ISRAEL TODAY. I am screaming and warning about measures that can be taken now to prevent terror attacks with the use of our dogs, to find missing people with dogs and to rescue people from under collapsed buildings, G-d forbid the need should arise. I seek not to say, “I told you so,” but rather to take basic measures today. That could only be done with significant financial support. We are not sufficiently getting through to the people who could make a significant difference. We are struggling daily to keep the unit afloat and to be able to respond to emergencies. It is not easy.

Please contribute generously to this holy life-saving mission. If not you, then who will step up to the plate? I do not enjoy begging. However, I tell you with great certainty that if our unit is forced to shut down that there is no other group out there with the ability to respond in any significant manner with the use of specially trained canines to a scenario where many buildings collapse. I can also tell you with certainty that there exists no other group that will do what we do in leading the searches for the people who go missing each and every day in Israel. I can also tell you with certainty that there exists no other group in Israel that deploys security dogs with security personnel in towns across Israel or to families who live on the border of vulnerable towns and “settlements”.

We have been using specially trained security and SAR dogs to save lives in Israel for the past 16 years with great success, rescuing missing people, preventing many terrorist attacks, and protecting places such as Mount of Olives in Jerusalem, Itamar, Yitzhar, Kiryat Arba, Mitzpeh Yair, Gush Etzyon, Elaazar, Tapuach, Bet El, Ofra, Shilo bloc, Haifa, Tzefat Forest, Kibbutz Lavie, Shedmot Mechola, Givaat Gal, Efrat, City of David, Nerya, Nachliel, Maaleh Shomron, Sde Bar- Nokdim, Kochav Hashachar, Ade Ad, Migdalim, Jericho bloc, Lebanon border, Tel Aviv, Haifa, Leshem, Jerusalem, Kfar Hassidim, Richeilim, Migdal HaEmek, Givaot Itamar, Beth Shemesh, Moshav Bekoa, Kedumim, Mitzpe Avichai, Ramat Beth Shemesh, Ashdod, Kiryat Malachi, Kiryat Ata, Ariel, Aminadav, Nachal Gerar – Negev, Hebron, Tapuach West, Netanya, Malachei Hasharet, Givaat Asaf, Mitspe Yericho, Eli, Ofra, Karmei Tzur, Maale Michmas, Mitzpe Donny, Kiryat Ono and more.

We have recommendations on file from the last three heads of the Shomron Council, The Commissioner of the Fire Dept., head of Shomron police search and rescue, Chief of Kiryat Gat Police, Chief of Netivot Police, Chief of Haifa police, Rabbi Dov Lior - Chief Rabbi of Kiryat Arba and Head of the Judea Samaria Rabbinic Committee, Rabbi Chai - Chief Rabbi of Itamar, Brig. General Knafo – former Machat Shomron, Shlomo Anavi - Chief of Security of Elaazar, Meir Hazani - Chief of Security Kedumim, Daniella Weiss, Mayor of Kedumim, Former Chief of Security of the Shomron, and many, many more.
Please make a generous contribution to “Maginei Eretz LMaan Hazulat, POBox 6592 Jerusalem Israel, 91060

or make a Credit Card donation now:

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The ISRAEL DOG UNIT (IDU) IN ACTION

11/6/2016

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Thursday the IDU – Israel Dog Unit (known as YaKaL in Hebrew) set off from our base in Tapuach with 5 dogs and 7 volunteers to continue the search for Shlomo Matnaya Didya, a 57 year-old man who went missing several weeks ago in Haifa. Didya who is disabled mentally and physically is almost blind and walks with a cane. He was last seen walking in the direction of a small grocery store that sits on Tishbi Street in the Carmel, several hundred yards away from various entry points to the slopes that lead down to Lotem Valley. He could easily have continued down the hill toward Lotem Valley and the cliffs above it as well as other nearby wilderness that border with the urban Carmel area. If Shlomo was on a park-bench or in view of people, surely they would have notified the authorities as it would be obvious that he is need of help. In all likelihood he accidently got on a wrong bus in attempt to visit a family member, or wandered off into the nearby wilderness, falling and never to be seen again. For this reason we are checking all of the bus stops that are on all of the routes that pass by a nearby bus stop. We are checking any stop that borders on wilderness-type areas and the entry points into those areas…We are also continuing to search the areas bordering with his hostel and the nearby store he frequented.

Thursday Nov. 3, we worked through most of the night but had no positive results other than canceling the areas that we searched leaving us with another 4-5 areas that we still need to get to. Each area requires 2-3 volunteers with cadaver dog and could take several hours. Thus, we should be able to finish the areas we have slated to do on our next day of searching, hopefully tonight.
Friday morning Nov. 4th we returned back to our Tapuach base exhausted. However, most of us could not yet retire to get some sleep. We still had two dozen dogs at the kennels that required care and we still had to get shopping and cooking done for Shabbat. Shabbat we would have 6 volunteers and an additional 4 yeshiva boys who joined us for Shabbat. Since we also run the minyan on the hill of Tapuach and the early morning prayers in the Yishuv in addition to our canine tasks we worked through the day Friday up until a minute before Shabbat. We were hoping to make kidush and start the meal immediately following the prayer services on the hill. This we did. During the meal, I dozed off on the couch near the dining room table only to be woken by the sound of my phone ringing. “No”! I mumbled to myself, as I jumped off of the couch and into my nearby room to get the phone, “Don’t tell me we have an emergency search,” to find a missing person at risk. On the other line was Dudu the head of our Northern branch, who has probably single-handedly found more missing people in the last year than all of the police and army combined.

“Mike, there is a very serious case in “Yad Rambam” near Ramla. A woman, who never went missing before, put out the food to cook before Shabbat, left the house walking and never returned to her husband and 4 children and this was 12 hours ago at 7:00 AM, police are requesting our help. This is an absolute emergency.” I asked him for the number of the local officer in charge of the search. I called, hoping to hear that she was found or that there are not much open fields or forests in the immediate area. I knew the area from a previous search for a doctor from Hadassah hospital who went missing from a nearby moshav. Jon Davidov the officer from the Ramla police precinct on the other line pleaded with me to come, expressing the need especially for dogs in the search. Ouch, another search. We are dead-tired. However, the halachic guidelines as prescribed by Rabbi Lior are clear. If there is a clear threat to life and if you can save the life by detecting the location of the missing person in distress, with the dogs and your search efforts, then you must go, even if this means violating the Shabbat. We packed some equipment and food along with the dogs and off we went. To Yad Rambam, 43 minutes away, according to the Waze app.

I now had to wake a few of the guys who were fast asleep, exhausted from yesterday’s search. I have to admit this case turned into one of the most bizarre cases we ever had. We arrived at the entrance to the moshav. The police waited for us to escort us to the house of the missing person, S.M., where we found her daughters and her sisters and neighbors crying with a several squad cars outside. She left Friday morning, without telling anyone. Leaving the fish to thaw out on the counter and the tomatoes and eggplants ready to be cooked for Shabbat, and she disappeared. A camera on the house that borders the closest exit-gate of the moshav picked her up walking off with a small bag and slippers and turning left towards the highway or the Gezer Valley in the nearby field.

It was now 12 hours since she went missing, despite the difficulty in trying to work a tracking dog in Israel after so many hours we had little to lose by trying. S.M.’s husband now returned home, after being released by police. We had no idea that he at that time was a suspect or that he had been in police custody. This we only learned Shabbat morning, after asking neighbors on the way home from synagogue what their feelings were and after rising concerns about the strange behavior of the husband. Every neighbor seemed to say the same thing, “She would never harm herself, but he would harm her and would beat her”. In fact, we were told he had beaten her the night before and maybe she ran away from the house or just went to get some fresh air. She never went missing before and loves and lives for her 4 children – she would never harm herself. She takes no drugs and drinks no alcohol. (That does not mean that someone else did not spike her drink.) There has been a lot of stress at home as their business crashed and they are bankrupt. But you would never know it looking at their beautiful villa and nice jeep and car parked in front of the house.

In the meantime, Daniel a dog handler and volunteer with a tracking dog arrived from Tel Aviv with his dog - loco. The police helped us secure some clothing of the missing person so that we can have Daniel’s dog sniff the garment and commence the search from the house seeing where the dog would lead us, and to see if the dog would indeed catch the scent and take us over the path that we knew she used based on the camera near the gate. Loco is a trailing dog, which means that she may not follow exactly the footsteps of our missing person but she should follow the general path and direction where the S.M’s scent left an impression, alongside the curbs or trees or fences she had passed in addition to footsteps. Loco led us to a tunnel that runs into the field and under the road and later into the field where Loco appeared to lose the scent. It is possible S.M. sat in the shade in the underpass for a while and that her scent was strong there because of the longtime that she spent there, in that more contain ed area, that would maintain her scent.

We then had Lee take out D’Jango - a tracking down that has not worked much over recent months. D’Jango is a fun Dutch Shepherd. He plays around during training but when there is a real search or a competition he seems to understand the gravity of the situation and he gets serious and works very well. He had his nose to the ground clearly working and sniffing the footsteps. At one point he lost the scent, to be returned to the last spot where he was visibly working and he took off like a rocket, catching the scent again and leading us directly to a bus stop across the highway, more or less following the path S.M. took when she left the Moshav. When D’Jango got to the bus-stop he circled and indicated there. We thought that it was very possible that she may have taken a bus towards Ramla/Tel Aviv or got a lift from the bus stop. However, we still felt obligated to search a 2-3 kilometer radius from the house, which included valleys, forest type areas and open fields. We would take a rest as it was now after midnight and most of us did not sleep much due to Thursday’s search.

We laid out our folding cots under the clear sky above, and some of us had the unique privilege to sleep sitting up in the van. The police had long gone. 6:00 in the morning, I woke up around the same time as Yehuda to walk the 5 dogs with us and to inform S.M.’s husband that we were continuing the search. I left him my card telling him to call us if there is some new information. I thought it was strange that he was not more involved in the search and not very forthcoming with information and ideas. I also thought it was strange when he asked us why we would want to search the local fields. That is what we do, we are volunteers with specially trained dogs to help find missing people. And when we have a specific direction the person was walking we check the fields in that direction hoping to find her with a broken leg alive and well a few hundred yards into a field or dehydrated under a tree, to hopefully save her life…His contradictory answers to some of our questions got us all the more concerned. I could not help but think that he had something to do with his wife’s mysterious disappearance. And he did not look very sincere when he was crying and pleading with me to help find his wife. Be that as it may, while we need to try and build the profile of the missing person to help us with leads where and what to search for, regardless, we have to cover the fields. However, I would pay a little more attention to places off the beaten track, but close enough to a path where someone might dump a body. But at the same time I would also focus on trees and brush like in any other search. Yes, she could have been murdered and her body dragged off the road into a pit, but she also could have walked into the forest, sat down and dehydrated under a tree, or broken a leg and lay injured anywhere in the field.

After Yehuda and I returned from a few hours of searching, we woke the others up and set off to establish the command center closer to the new areas we would have to extend the search to. At around 12.30 the crews returned from the next search tasks and we would rest, make Kiddush and eat something at the command center. An hour later we resumed the search. By now S.M.’s siblings and their spouses found our new command center and they wanted to help in the search. When I learned how emotionally attached and close our missing-person was to her loving family I realized that this case is far more severe than we had originally contemplated. There is no way that S.M. would not contact one of her family members who she is regularly in contact with unless she was in a position where she could not talk or dead.

As usual, we were the only ones in the depth of the field to help the family and the missing persons close friends. The police might show up in the house to make believe that they are doing something, from time to time however if she is in the field and in need of help we would be her last chance of survival. Knowing and seeing that, we felt that we must complete the areas in the immediate 3 kilometer range as quickly as possible. Our new tracking smartphone application allows us to manage and view exactly where our volunteers and dogs are searching and to see if any areas need to be better searched later. It is all archived and we could access it and merge the previous searchers together with the present search. Each searcher has a color and all of his/her movements are seen on a smartphone or a computer at the command center. We also have our volunteers mark with paint or with marking tape the exact boundaries of the search on trees and other landmarks in the field.
To be continued another time.

S.M. was found alive (I don’t know how well though) she is in a hospital in Haifa and reunited with her family. It seems that D’Jango was right. She evidently got to that bus stop he led us too and ended up in Haifa after changing buses…

The IDU Israel Dog Unit won’t be sleeping much later today-
Later today I hope to drop off two security dogs in Kiryat Arba and perhaps two additional security dogs in Efrat and give the recipients a crash-course in the proper maintenance and bonding with these highly trained security dogs - So that they are ready on Nov. 16th, for their first training exercise with the dogs. Then, I hope to go to Haifa for yet one last ditch effort to find Shlomo Didya.

Every day of operations and training of the unit can easily cost 1500 shekels to gas up the cars, feed the volunteers, care for the dogs etc…We need more volunteers and funds to keep our unit alive and well, in position to help with the security of many Jewish towns and “settlements” in Israel as well as to conduct the searches for missing people. Both our security programs with dogs as well as our SAR - search and rescue endeavors are in desperate need of funds at this time.
Donations can be sent directly to Maginei HaEretz LMaan Hazulat POBox 6592 Jerusalem Israel 91060
CC donations or bank transfer can be sent. Here is the donate link on our site:
http://www.israel-civilian-k9-unit.org/donate.html

Thanks,

With Love of Israel, Yekutiel (Mike)

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Search Updates

9/7/2016

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Dear friends,

I am sending you this urgent appeal for funds to help the Israel Dog Unit continue to answer the many emergency requests we are receiving to help provide security dogs for “settlements” and border towns as well as to help search for missing people with the use of our specially trained SAR dogs and volunteer dog handlers.

As you know the IDU Israel Dog Unit operates two units. One unit uses security dogs to protect Jews and prevent terrorist attacks and the second unit uses SAR dogs to find missing people.

Last Wednesday we spent the entire night running the command center and searching for Jon Ben Saadon an elderly man who was successfully found in the morning.

Pics and a video from our command center on that search can be seen in the article below:

http://www.theyeshivaworld.com/news/headlines-breaking-stories/457808/video-israel-missing-80-year-old-alzheimer-patient-found-alive-and-well.html

Sunday morning we spent 36 hours non-stop, running the command center and spearheading the search for Marc Yisraelov in Kiryat Yam. He has been missing since Friday night and has still not been found. We are still running that search.

Tel Aviv Collapsed building
Yesterday we spoke to the IDF Home Front Commander running the search for the trapped missing people under the rubble of the collapsed building in Tel Aviv, volunteering our services to help locate the missing people still under the rubble.

The Lebanese border
Earlier today three “settlements” and a town near the Lebanese border called us to ask us to allocate security dogs and training for their town’s security patrols.

Several hours ago Ashqelon police reopened a missing person file and called asking us to bring cadaver dogs to aid in a search for a missing woman. They reopened the case after receiving new information about the vicinity where her body may be. Monday we will G-d willing be joining the army and police search teams.

Several minutes ago, I received a call from the police in Beer Sheba who asked us to help search for Dovid verinski a 76 year old man who is missing there.
http://www.israel-civilian-k9-unit.org/missing-people-alert/missing-david-veranski

Thursday we will be providing our weekly security training course from Kiryat Arba in the south to Tapuach in Samaria.

Every search and every full day of training costs us 1000-2000 shekels to gas up our rescue vehicles and mobile kennels as well as to provide food for the volunteers.

Every security dog or SAR dog can cost from 5000-10000 dollars to buy or to breed, raise and fully train.

Maintaining our volunteer dorms, and our kennels costs us thousands of dollars per month.

We have more than 80 dogs in our program and we are the number one search and rescue outfit in Israel. We are the only group that also offers security dogs to farms and settlements throughout the land, providing not only the service dogs but the training of the dogs and the handlers to properly use the dogs.

We rely on your private support to continue to provide these life-saving services in Israel. This is clearly a mitzva that cannot and will not be done by others.
We are in desperate need of funds at this time to fix vehicles, maintain the kennels, provide the dogs and to save lives in Israel.

We lack the funds to set off for Beer Sheba tonight. I will need to once again borrow funds from volunteers to fill the vehicles with fuel for the journey to Beer Sheba. I told the police that if Dovid is not found by 2.00 AM I will bring a team of handlers and dogs to help search through the night and morning, before it gets too hot for the dogs to search and while hopefully Dovid can still be found alive.
I appeal to you to send a contribution or to make a credit card contribution now. Your funds will likely cover the costs of the search for Dovid.
Funds can be sent to “Maginei Eretz LMaan Hazulat” POBox 6592 Jerusalem Israel.

Credit Card donations can be processed for immediate use of the unit at the link here:

http://www.israel-civilian-k9-unit.org/credit-card-donate.html

www.israel-civilian-k9-unit.org/credit-card-donate.html

Contributions can be considered Maaser and the dog unit is endorsed by Rabbi Dov Lior, Chief Rabbi of Hebron, Rabbi Chai, Chief Rabbi of Itamar, Rabbi Uri Zohar, Brigadier General Knafo, Shachar Ayyalon, Commissioner of the Israeli fire dept and by many additional Rabbis, officers and public officials.

Thanks and have great New Year,

With Love of Israel,

Yekutiel (Mike)

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Update on search for Chen Asmatker in Afikim near Tiberias

4/5/2016

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The search for Chen Asmatker in Kibbutz Afikim near Tiberias is continuing. We at the IDU Israel Dog Unit searched into the night and have stopped for a rest at a nearby gas station. We hope to resume the search at 6 AM. Anyone wishing to join the search can meet us at the entrance to the kibbutz at6.00 AM in the Delek Minta Gas Station. If you can't physically join us you can still help by circulating Chen's picture. I am including a more updated photo than the one we put on the flyers.

The Tiberias police brass have learned to take our advice seriously. We have a history with them after helping in previous searches here. They know full well that there is no group or unit out there that will search as deep in the wilderness as the IDU dogs and dog-handlers. They also know that we will be out there hours before anyone else, and stay far after all the others will abandon the search. Our volunteers are not only the most committed but they have the professional skills and experience so lacking in most of the other search teams.

The police remember full well that when we searched for A.C. two years back, that we were right when we tried unsuccessfully to move the search out of the Swiss Forest and in the direction of Poriya. A.C. was found dead weeks later in the fields outside of Poriya. The cops also remember how right we were when in another search for V.Y. last year, we urged them to keep the search local. The Mayor and the Chief of police insisted on widening the search to kibbutzim and moshavim out of the city. We convinced them to allocate one squad to focus on the immediate area where he went missing. It was that lone squad, under our guidance that found V.Y. a few hundred meters away, 1 hour after the meeting in Tiberias City Hall, thanks to our stubborn input. Today when I arrived at the briefing in the command center at Mitzpeh Mussa on the outskirts of Afikim, the same officers were humble enough to allow us to help direct the search, recalling the previous cases, and our proven success rate.

As much as we would love to go home and sleep in a normal bed, I know that we are needed here and that there is still a chance to find Chen alive, with G-d's help.

Chen left his house without his tallit and tefillin, something that he never does if he intended to go away for a few days. He was last seen Thursdayevening heading out in the direction of the Afikim cemetery, where his grandfather is buried, and where he often visits to say prayers. The outskirts of that area is lined with cliffs. He also is known to have traveled regularly to the nearby town of Menachamiya. Fields, canyons and orchards and the Jordan River stand between Afikim and Menachamiya to the south. The valley splits off in the north heading to Yavniel. There are no shortage of Arabs in the general vicinity. Anything could have happened to Chen. All we know is that he left a freshly cooked meal untouched at home. His phone stopped signalling 4.30 PM Thursday evening, about the same time neighbors saw him exiting the back gate of Ofakim heading in the general direction of the cemetery and the cliffy wilderness. The last person he spoke with on his phone was traced to a Rabbi who said that he was in a confused and depressed state of mind. The witnesses who last saw him walking west in the direction of the cemetery, the fields, canyons and cliffs said that he did not look well. Chen is not well physically and is under tremendous mental strain at this time. He needs his medication, especially if he G-d forbid lays injured somewhere in the nearby fields.

Dozens of volunteers searched today. IDF soldiers, police, a helicopter, horses, jeeps and more. we came with our dogs to go into the types of spots that others would not venture to even try and access. We brought our drone to transmit photos from above the jungle high shrubs under the cliffs.

We are all hoping that he went to some yeshiva in Zefat or Jerusalem. His worried family wants to believe that this is the case. We all realize that if he fell wounded in the nearby wilderness, that his chance of survival is dwindling by the minute. We still have plenty of spots to check. We are reluctant to take out the cadaver dogs. We want to believe that even if he is here, that somehow he is still alive. And so we are still focusing on the Search and Rescue Dogs. Pray for Chen and spread his photo, maybe someone saw him somewhere and could help us learn more about the direction we need to search in.

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Israel Dog Unit in the News

3/28/2016

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יחידת הכלבנים בחדשות

http://haipo.co.il/forum/item/17204

בנחל שיח בחיפה התגלתה הלילה מוטלת גופת גבר כבן 50. הגופה התגלתה על ידי יחידת הכלבנים המתנדבים, במהלך חיפושים אחר נעדר

לחי פֹּה נודע כי ככל הנראה מדובר בנעדר תושב נתניה אותו מחפשת המשטרה מאז השבת שעברה, אבל הוא טרם זוהה באופן ודאי.
גופתו נשלחה למכון הלאומי לרפואה משפטית.
הדיווח התקבל ממתנדבים של יחידת הכלבנים הארצית גילו את הגופה בסריקות בואדי.

תנדבי יחידת הכלבנים בעת הסריקות בנחל שיח בחיפה. צילום: דודי מיבלום
הגופה נמצא על המדרון הדרומי מתחת לשכונת כרמליה במקום קשה ביותר להגעה וחולצה על ידי מתנדבי היחידה באמצעות צוות טג"ח של היחידה שהגיע למקום והוציא את הגופה לאמבולנס.

הדיווח התקבל מדודי מיבלום מתנדב ביחידת הכלבנים

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Training Search and Rescue Dogs אימון כלבי חיפוש והצלה

3/16/2016

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Tracking and Air Searching training for Search and Rescue Dogs with the help of fresh volunteers from the Nokdim Mechina. The dogs need to practice searching for new people all the time. Even though we go on real searches on a weekly basis, in training one can focus on correcting specific issues in a controlled way.

אימון כלבי חיפוש והצלה לגישוש ופישפוש בעזרת מתנדבים חדשים ממכינת נוקדים. הכלבים צריכים ריענון כל הזמן. למרות שאנו יוצאים לחיפושים אמיתיים על בסיס שבועי באמונים ניתן להתמקד ולתקן בעיות מסוימות.

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Diary of the Israel Dog Unit Searching for the lost Jews of Israel

2/21/2016

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The following summary of some of the recent searches carried out by IDU, Israel’s Dog Unit, is being written by the commander of the unit – Yekutiel (Mike) Ben Yakov after a full night of searching and after a week of searching for 4 missing people in Israel. Two of the searches are continuing. Two of the cases have been solved.

The Israel Dog Unit has two independent wings – One, that provides security dogs for vulnerable towns in Israel. More than 300 security dogs have been allocated by the IDU over the past 15 years of its existence. The second wing of the Israel Dog Unit trains and deploys specially trained SAR – Search and Rescue dogs and their volunteer handlers to search for and rescue missing people in Israel. Out of 4000 people who are reported missing in Israel every year, 100-200 are considered serious cases. IDU participates in approximately 70 searches per year. Every year, Israel adds 30-40 additional people to the list of missing people who are never found or recovered. Now, some 600 people that have never been found. Amazing for a small country.

Please excuse any typos that may appear in this brief diary of our recent searches as the author of the following article is exhausted and rushing to continue on the two unsolved cases.

Our posters did the trick – Shneiderman was reunited with his family

IDU set off on the search for Aaron Shnederman on Friday Feb. 12, 16 (Lminyanam) After analyzing the case the unit assessed that he was not a high-risk case that justifies breaking Shabbat. However, there were certain risks that needed to be factored in. After the unit interviewed Aaron’s family it was decided that 2.5 hours would be allocated Friday afternoon to searching the beachfront and Central Bus Station areas in Tel Aviv. The unit generated and printed several hundred flyers with Aaron’s picture, and commenced posting them up in the areas that were being searched, with the hope that someone might have seen him and could help direct us to his last known location. Many calls came in to our hotline confirming that we were hot on his trail. Unfortunately our search crews left Tel Aviv empty handed. Little did we know that our goal to unite Aaron with his worried family was achieved. Aaron saw the posters featuring his own picture and decided to go home, after have been missing for a week.

NEXT TIME YOU GET A MESSAGE FROM US ABOUT A MISSING PERSON - KNOW THAT YOU CAN PLAY A ROLE IN FINDING HIM EVEN IF YOU ARE SITTING BEHIND YOUR KEYBOARD IN MOSCOW OF NEW YORK. AFTER ALL YOU COULD SEND THE PHOTO OUT TO FRIENDS AND FAMILY IN ISAREL OR ON FORUMS AND FACEBOOK AND SOMEONE CAN RECOGNIZE THE PICTURE AND LEAD US IN THE DIRECTION OF OUR MISSING PERSON WENT…

Tuesday we set off for a missing person in Kiryat Gat at the request of the Kiryat Gat police precinct. He was reported to be a high risk case. Just as we arrived with 6 dogs and 10 volunteers in Kiryat Gat, the missing person was found alive and well. HaLevai all of our missing people searches should have such a happy ending.

Thursday we set off for Beit Shean - 10 volunteers – 4 vehicles and 2 cadaver dogs to help police recover a body of a missing person who is believed to have shot himself in the forest near Beit Shean. The search is still on, more searching will G-d willing take placefor our missing person in Beit Shean, in the upcoming hours today, Sunday Feb. 21, 16.

Thursday the unit returned exhausted to the Tapuach base and to Sde Bar, some of the new volunteers who came from Yeshiva David HaMelech and from Itamar’s Yeshiva Hitzim, were taught by the unit how to search and mark the territory being searched..

RETURNING EXHAUSTED TO LAUNCH YET ANOTHER SEARCH FOR SHAI BECKER
Thursday night Mira Tal sister of Yishayahu Becker pleaded with us to help her find her missing brother “Shai”, who left his girlfriend’s house in Netanya very depressed Sunday, thus missing for 5 days at the time we received the call for help. Together with Mira we plotted out 7-8 spots where we should search in Haifa. We determined that this was a high risk case, one which we assumed would even justify a search over Shabbat. We set out Friday to begin searching. We realized that if not us, nobody else would search in the necessary areas, cliffs, caves and wilderness that needed to be searched. We also realized that if he was wounded in the areas we planned to search that he could only survive for a few days without water and with wild animals in the vicinity. To our surprise our Rabbinic authority thought it best to search on Friday and then to return Saturday night after Shabbat,which we did.

SHABBAT BREAK WITH LEE-ANN’S FAMILY IN KIBBUTZ LAVIE
In truth the unit really needed the rest Shabbat and we had all been invited to Lee-Ann’s family in Kibbutz Lavee to celebrate her birthday. The invite was made weeks earlier and Lee Ann’s folks prepared a feast for Lee Ann’s birthday Shabbat. Incredible hospitality. Not only did they host 10 hungry members of our unit, they had an additional 15 friends and family. Lee Ann’s dedication does not fall from the tree. Her family are good hard-working people who made Aliya from South Africa and who truly love Israel and their fellow Jews.

Recruiting a serious soldier – Aaron Rose- welcome aboard
On Shabbat we recruited Aharon Rose a Brtish Oleh from England who is currently in the army in the pre-service ulpan, and a welcomed guest of Lee-Ann’s family. After we learned that he was as crazy as the rest of us in his passion for search and rescue and after we learned that he was an expert map-reader and navigator we had him give a short class after Shabbat lunch and informed him that he was being drafted for the search for “Shai” Becker which we would resume Saturday night. We assured him that he would get to his base Sunday morning by hook or by crook. This assurance was also made to Shimon – that we would make sure he gets back to Ashdod in time to rest Sunday before college.

SHIMON'S COMMITMENT IS UNIQUE AND UNPARALLELED
Shimon, who is serving his final year of his military service while studying in Ashdod, is one of our more seasoned searchers. He does not mind a good drink, nor does he mind running up and down hills and in the roughest terrain there could be. He is thorough - More thorough than most of our people. I still remember him picking maggots out of the wounds of dogs all night, one at a time, when he was 17, 3 years ago before he enlisted in the IDF. And make no mistake our guys and gals are far more committed or thorough than any police or soldier who would be involved in any of our searches. But don’t worry we rarely see anyone in the thick of things searching in the day time, let alone through the night. When I refer to “soldiers” I am not talking about our soldiers who are part of the IDU unit and live in Tapuach in our dorms as lone soldiers who dedicate their time when they are on leave from the Army. Tzvi, Baruch, Arye, Lee, Yitzhak and the others are all talented, dedicated members of the unit who perform over and beyond, when they get off from the army. While their friends from the army are out partying before they return to their respective bases and positions in the army, our soldiers are out on the cliffs and forests saving lives with our unit, returning to their bases after they have performed the greatest mitzvah of all – saving lives or bringing fellow Jews to a proper Jewish burial. May G-d bless them when they are on duty with the IDF and when they are off duty from the IDF and on duty with the IDU – Israel’s dog unit. May G-d bless them and keep them well and out of harm’s way. Am Yisrael needs them more than they will ever know. There is no other unit out there with people with hearts as big as theirs, with skills in scuba diving, snappling-repelling, dog handling, navigational skills, search proficiency, willing to look for all of the desperate lost souls of Israel who cry out for help.

Back to Shabbat in Kibbuts Lavie
We parked the trucks full of dogs and equipment in the shade in Kibbutz Lavee after returning from Friday’s search in Haifa. We made sure to detach the battery from the big truck so that we would not have any surprises Sat night when we need to leave. The batteries on our old big trucks always seem to die over Shabbat. At least the Fiat could charge and boost the econoline Sat night. We made it a few minutes before shkia- sunset. The guys rushed their stuff to the guest house on the Kibbutz.

MEETING THE CHIEF OF POLICE
We rushed to shul only to learn that none other than the new Chief of police would be sitting next to us under the watchful eyes of his body guards. Knowing that Israeli law places searches for missing people under the authority of the Israeli police and knowing full well the negligence and incompetence of the police on searches, I decided to take advantage of this heavenly gift. I figured it is all from Heaven and I would try and force a meeting upon the poor-fellow in shul. As he exited the shul I approached him and said, “You are religious and appreciate the significance of Pikuach Nefesh – saving lives. Discussing this subject surely overrides the tranquility of your Shabbat and of your vacation. Would you give me ten minutes to discuss missing people and the necessary reform that could save many lives. He answered, “sure, tomorrow right after shul we can meet. I feared that he was blowing me off -But made sure to be at shul in the morning. To my surprise, Roni Elshach showed, Israel’s number 1 COP actually showed up and gave me 15 minutes to chew his ear off with my missing people stories. He sat mouth agape, asking a brief question here and there. I gave him a booklet that I had written specifically on the subject outlining what the police and state need to do to upgrade searches. He took the book, looked at me and said,”I promise to study the subject. ”Maybe I am gullible, but I believe him. And I don’t believe in coincidences. One never knows, if anything will yet come of this “coincidental” meeting.

SATURDAY NIGHT OFF TO HAIFA
Saturday night comes, and off we go to Haifa. We set to meet Dudu Mayflower, our point man in Haifa. Dudu is a magical mystery man. Not only does he know Haifa like the palm of his hand, own a jeep and come out searching and navigating whenever we end up in the north. He also seems to know every cop and office south of Egypt. They – the cops -like him, listen to him and he is able to connect us with whoever we need to get to in the field. We set up to meet by the beach across from the cemetery. Lee sets up our make-shift command center, starts to brew coffee and basically does whatever is needed from coffee making, to driving, to navigation, searching, fixing the cars, walking the dogs to helping to rescue the missing people. I don’t know who is more diverse and clever – Arye, Lee, or the others. These are the type of soldiers that any commander would have to be crazy not to want at their side.

HAIFA’S BERMUDA TRIANGLE
Friday we had met by the cemetery. I thought we can have a nicer planning meeting near the beach. The cemetery is creepy enough. Not to mention our record of finding missing people dead near the cemetery right under a small Arab village alongside the “Siach Valley” that leads to caves and springs. I call it the”Haifa Bermuda Triangle” because so many searches end there with us never finding the missing person or with recovering only body parts. We planned to search between the beach and the cemetery and then through the cemetery, then further through the valley and up the cliff towards Mira’s home in Carmelite. Mira and Shai’s mom is buried in that cemetery.

SHAI WAS TRAPPED BETWEEN HIS MOM’S GRAVE AND HIS ONLY SISTER’S HOME ON THE CLIFF ABOVE
Shai and Mira’s mom died when they were kids back in 73. They had a real rough childhood. They remembered being dragged to mom’s grave by dad after he forced them to wait all day when he would fish at the beach. The only thing Shai had left in life was mom in the cemetery and his sister’s family overlooking the beach and cemetery. Shai was also recently diagnosed with a fatal liver disease. We had reason to believe that Shai visited his mom’s grave on Sunday morning. We had good reason to believe he was in the area, alive or dead, or laying injured. We were right.

Shimon scaled up and down the cliffy hill – finding the body
Shai was found by Shimon near a tree half way between his mother’s grave and his loving sister’s home. He did not want to be a burden on his sister and her family and was living and laying dead over part of this past week in full view of his sister’s home and of his mom’s resting place. His sister heard a loud shout a few days ago. Who knows maybe it was Shai as he fell off the rock he was sitting on. Maybe he was there unconscious for who knows how long. The paramedic that declared him dead thought he could have been dead for a day or two, maybe three.

Our Guys then needed to do the dirty work to honor the dead
If that was not enough for one night - We quickly realized that the cops sent to the scene were not fit to climb up and down the side of the ridge. Our guys helped push them up the hill as necessary. The time was passing and they seemed clueless in extricating the body down the hill to the ambulance. Our guys asked me for the ok to get involved. The cops also got their ok for us to help from their commanders. Clearly we saved hours and prevented needless, unnecessary dishonor and desecration of the dead. Mira was waiting with her in-laws at the foot of the valley with me. I was doing my best to help Mira and the family to cope with the situation. I called in out rapeling expert to bring ropes and equipment to safe-guard our people and the stretcher carrying Shai. Yoel our local expert got to us in no-time.

By 4.00 AM the police and the ambulance were on their way to the pathologists at Abu Kabir. I made sure Dudu arranged that our newest recruit -Aharon would be driven by the police back to kibbutz Lavi. And Shimon was sent back to Ashdod by train.

THE DAY HAS JUST BEGUN AND THERE IS SO MUCH YET TO DO
Lee, Louis and Akiva went back to Tapuach to tend to our dogs at the kennels and to rest a bit, scheduled to meet us later in Beit Shean to continue the search for yet another missing person there hopefully to meet us at noon. Yoel and Dudu went home to Haifa where they live. Arye, and I head off for Migdal HaEmek to continue another search here and later to meet up with us and our people in Beit Shean for that search. Arye’s dad Gideon and Nachshon his son are eaer to meet us in Beit Shean or Migdal HaEmek. They also want to fulfil the greatest mitzvah in the Torah to save a life or the great Hessed to recover a body if G-d forbid the missing person is no longer among the living. That too, is no small matter to perform the ultimate act of kindness to bring a Jew to a Jewish burial. Let us not forget how many missing people are never found or who have their bodies eaten by wild animals in the fields. The speed of starting a search early enough could be the difference of life or death. It could also be the dofference between recovering or not recovering a body or nothing.

Never a dull moment in the IDU - Israel Dog Unit.
I assure you this is only a partial list of our activities this past week. I have not even began writing about our security dog department and training. We provide training for dozens of people and dogs to help secure their families and towns.

We need more volunteers, vehicles, dogs and funds. If you want to get involved with this unique mitzvah that is truly under the category of a mitzvah that will not be done by others, feel free to call me or email back 0544876709 , Thanks, Yekutiel

Special thanks this week to Gideon, Nachshon, Louis, Yeshiva Hitzim, Suchi, the kids form Yeshiva Dovid Hamalech, Akiva and Lee for earlier this week, and for last night to Yoel, Dudu, Shimon, Arye, Aaaron, Louis, Mira, Lee.

And let me not forget my dear friend Yonatan, a reserve officer from an elite unit who like many of our volunteers continues to help us even after his IDF service. He lives in Haifa and was happy to come down and help us in the search and in the recovery of Shai Becker.

This email is dedicated to our noble volunteers and our generous sponsors
This email dedicated to our volunteers and to our donors who sustain this magnificent unit of people who have taught me the true meaning of self-sacrifice and dedication to a mitzvah that would not be performed by any other unit, under these difficult conditions and circumstances. I salute you – the “crazy” volunteers of the Israel Dog Unit. Finally dedication and professionalism meet. Heart, skill and competency -Searching for your fellow Jew and defending your fellow Jew as if they were literally your biological brother and sister. A true inspiration to me and to every Jew.

CARRY ON and continue to save lives, from Chayil to Chayil, sanctifying G-d’s name and teaching the police and the families and all who meet you the true meaning of Ahavat Yisrael. I am truly proud of you Shimon, Aryeh, Nachshon, Gideon, Yoel, Suchi, Louis, Yonatan, Akiva, Lee Ann, Baruch, Laizer, Dudu, Lior, Ariel, Lee, Yitzhak, Adam, Yisrael, Itamar, Midrash Shmuel, Nativ, Pinchas, Devora, Donny, Aharon, Goldman, Nitai, Dovi, Tzvi, Yishai, Adir, Matan and all of the others who are there in the trenches when you are called upon.

With Love of Israel, Yekutiel (Mike)

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We need your support
in order to continue

If you would like to have a part in this wonderful mitzvah, either as a volunteers or as a donor, please call
Yekutiel
+972(0)54 487 6709
US number 19174750789

הפעילות שלנו מוגבלת למדינת ישראל בלבד. נא לדווח כל
אירוע של היעדרות למשטרה במוקדר 100. לאחר מכן נא להתקשר אנו לבדוק איך אנו יכולים לסייעה לחיפוש

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Our operations are limited to Israel only. All missing persons need to be reported to the Police at the 100 call center. Once you have reported to them please call us to see how we could assist with the search.

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