K9 Trackers Perth founder Lesley Watson with handler Sonya Bowditch and Bella.
Camera IconK9 Trackers Perth founder Lesley Watson with handler Sonya Bowditch and Bella. Credit: Supplied/Angela Bowditch

K9 Trackers Perth and Beaconsfield childcare centre team up for emergency exercise

Jessica NicoFremantle Gazette

WHEN a group of children from the Lefroy Road Childcare Centre in Beaconsfield suddenly disappeared, it was lucky K9 Trackers Perth dog Bella was on hand to help sniff them out.

Fortunately it was not a real emergency but a chance for the organisation’s team to use Bella to teach the young children what to do if they ever got lost.

K9 Trackers Perth handler Sonya Bowditch said Bella’s first demonstration was to track down an educator who had walked from a local bus stop to the centre before heading to the playground to find the hiding children one by one.

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“Children loved being found by K9 Bella, they loved the interaction between her and them,” she said.

“We also sat with the children during a mat session and had a discussion about what to do if you become lost and the children asked many questions about what our dogs do.

“It is important to teach young children what to do if they should become lost as it could save valuable time by the search teams, as it teaches the children not to wander and stay where they are.”

Ms Bowditch said K9 Trackers Perth was a free service to help find missing or lost people.

Visit www.facebook.com/K9trackersperth for more information.

Tips to teach children if they get lost

-Teach them their home address and phone number as early as possible. -Teach them to find a tree and stay under it (for shelter and protection). -Teach them not to keep wandering around-find a tree and stay there.

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