為什么災難來臨時我們要求助于狗

為什么災難來臨時我們要求助于狗

When disaster strikes, man’s best friend is often there, working on the front lines and behind the scenes of rescue efforts, helping people cope with trauma and loss.

當災難發(fā)生時，人類最好的朋友經(jīng)常在那里，在第一線和救援工作的幕后，幫助人們應對創(chuàng)傷和損失。

Lutheran Church Charities (LCC) sent a team of dogs and handlers to Dayton, Ohio, to give support after this weekend's mass shooting where nine people died. Methodist Healthcare in San Antonio sent dogs to El Paso, Texas. They are providing support to first responders after the weekend's mass shooting where 20 people were killed and 26 more were wounded. The dogs will visit first responder stations as well as hospitals in the city, KSAT reported.

路德教會慈善機構(LCC)在本周末造成9人死亡的大規(guī)模槍擊事件發(fā)生后，派遣了一隊狗和訓練人員前往俄亥俄州代頓市提供支持。圣安東尼奧的衛(wèi)理公會醫(yī)療中心把狗送到德克薩斯州的埃爾帕索。在周末的大規(guī)模槍擊事件中，20人死亡，26人受傷。據(jù)韓國衛(wèi)星電視臺報道，這些狗狗將前往該市的急救站和醫(yī)院。

A group of comfort dogs provided comfort at various shelters and first responder camps connected to the California wildfires. (Photo: LCC K-P Comfort Dogs/Facebook)

Last fall, LCC dispatched a team of dogs and handlers to California in response to the Camp Fire, the state's deadliest wildfire. The dogs provided much needed love and comfort to thousands of evacuees at various shelters and churches. The organization said the dogs helped the residents "reduce their stress, share their worries and pray with them." The dogs also visited first responders who worked around-the-clock battling the wildfire.

去年秋天，LCC派遣了一隊狗和馴養(yǎng)員前往加州，以應對該州最致命的野火——營火。狗狗們在各個避難所和教堂為成千上萬的撤離者提供了他們急需的愛和安慰。該組織表示，這些狗幫助居民“減輕壓力，分擔憂慮，并與他們一起祈禱。”狗狗們還拜訪了那些夜以繼日與大火奮戰(zhàn)的急救人員。

While medical professionals tend to the survivors, four-legged caretakers look after everyone else — from family members who lost loved ones to first responders and other members of a community in shock.

醫(yī)療專業(yè)人員照顧幸存者，而四條腿的看護人照顧其他人——從失去親人的家庭成員到第一時間做出反應的人，以及社區(qū)中其他受到驚嚇的成員。

A certified comfort dog, Ruthie, in Las Vegas after the deadly shooting at the Mandalay Bay hotel. (Photo: LCC K-9 Comfort Dogs/Facebook)

When disasters occur, dogs do much more than just aid search-and-rescue missions. They’re often there to provide a source of comfort for us in ways that only an animal can.

當災難發(fā)生時，狗不僅僅是幫助搜救任務。它們經(jīng)常以只有動物才能做到的方式為我們提供安慰。

Research shows that petting dogs can lower anxiety, regulate breathing and decrease blood pressure, and a Japanese study found that simply looking at a dog can increase levels of oxytocin, a chemical released by the pituitary gland that’s associated with human bonding and affection.

研究表明，愛撫狗狗可以降低焦慮，調(diào)節(jié)呼吸，降低血壓。日本的一項研究發(fā)現(xiàn)，僅僅看著狗狗就能增加催產(chǎn)素的水平——垂體分泌的一種化學物質(zhì)，與人際關系和情感有關。

A boy hugs one of the Lutheran Church Charities K-9 Comfort Dogs. (Photo: LCC K-9 Comfort Dogs/Facebook)

Experts estimate that one search and rescue or SAR dog can accomplish the work of 20 to 30 human searchers. Because of these unparalleled abilities, the number of trained SAR dogs has been rising across the United States.

專家估計，一只搜救犬可以完成20到30名搜救人員的工作。由于這些無與倫比的能力，訓練有素的搜救犬的數(shù)量在美國一直在上升。

Dogs make efficient searchers due to their superior vision, hearing and sense of smell. A dog’s nose is about 100 times more sensitive than a human nose, and SAR dogs are trained to locate human scents amid countless other smells. They track our scents by the 30,000 to 40,000 dead skin cells we drop every minute.

狗是高效的搜索者，因為它們有優(yōu)越的視覺、聽覺和嗅覺。狗的鼻子比人的鼻子靈敏100倍左右，搜救犬經(jīng)過訓練能夠在無數(shù)其他氣味中找到人的氣味。它們通過我們每分鐘掉落的3萬到4萬個死皮細胞來追蹤我們的氣味。

Riley, a search and rescue dog is transported out of the debris of the World Trade Center post 9/11. (Photo: Journalist 1st Class Preston Keres/U.S. Navy)

In addition to air-scent dogs, there are dogs taught to seek out both skin cells and the smell of human decomposition. During major disasters, such as the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing and the 2001 collapse of the World Trade Center, both air-scent dogs and cadaver dogs were used to search for people.

除了搜索難聞氣味的狗狗，還有一些狗狗學會了尋找皮膚細胞和人類分解的氣味。在重大災難中，比如1995年的俄克拉荷馬城爆炸案和2001年的世界貿(mào)易中心倒塌事件中，都使用了空氣嗅探犬和尸體嗅探犬來尋找人類。