Cadaver dog returns to Utah


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SALT LAKE CITY — If there was a contest for a dog wagging its tail the fastest, Daisy just might have won first place on Thursday.

You'd wag your tail, too, if you were finally home after two weeks of doing one of the most difficult jobs you'd ever face.

"It's probably the hardest search we've ever had to do," said Jon Cain, Daisy's handler, "It's just the mud is so deep and so thick. It's either mud or fallen timber, so it's just tough to navigate."

Cain and Daisy, a cadaver search dog, spent the past two weeks in Washington in the mudslide zone.

They, along with Liz Baumgartner and her dog Pax, were assigned there as members of Utah's Task Force 1.

The team specializes in search and rescue operations, but these dogs are cadaver dogs.

Their job was to find bodies under all that mud, hopefully giving closure to the victims' families.

"She did great. She worked better than I had hoped," said Cain, "I thought after a while she would say the heck with this, but she kept going."

In all, Daisy found two bodies and spent many hours searching and clearing areas so they wouldn't have to be searched again.

"It's 10 feet of mud on this side, 30 feet of mud on this side," said Cain, "You have to be careful where you step because you'll sink in. We had several handlers that had to be pulled out because once you're in, you can't move."

Baumgartner and Pax came home last week.

Thursday afternoon, Cain and Daisy arrived at the Salt Lake International Airport.

However, if more help is needed, any kind of help, team members say they are ready to return.

"It's tough work out there," said Cain.

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