Cortina d’Ampezzo (AP) in Italy – Zen is a 5-year-old border collie who hovered around a pile of snow as he picked up the scent, his quick movement signaled his handler that someone was buried underneath.
Zen has been a rescue dog for three years, and on this day he sets an example for 20 other dogs certified for avalanche rescue in the center of Dolomites in Italy, where the breathtaking jagged peaks feature long-standing fascinating writers, painters, painters and outdoor enthusiasts.
With the increase in the number of people caught by avalanche, the role of dogs in Italian alpine rescue has become increasingly important – it has grown by 50% over the past 25 years.
Climate change makes heavy wet snow more common in the mid-term between 1,500-2,500 meters (5,000-8,000 feet), and most outingists take risks, which reduces the likelihood of avalanche survival, thus reducing the air pockets that can allow trapped alpine or outer shoulder skiers to breathe.
Adriano Favre said the trained avalanche rescue dog’s nose can be buried deeper in the snow more accurately than any responder, which allows their characters to “get the victim in the shortest time,” said Adriano Favre, who runs a dog camp at the mountain training camp on the Cortina d’Ampezzo above Cortina d’Ampezzo, Chin Chic Ski Resort and Venterort and Venterry and of 2026’s Cortina d’Ampezzo.
In order to train and practice, Zen Buddhism appears vibrantly from the snow, Zen Buddhism is full of signs of life and signs of life. Shortly afterwards, his handlers dug out a volunteer’s victim from the snow and awakened Zen with praise and feelings.
“All of our dogs need to have a close relationship with the handler. If not, we won’t be able to read what he was trying to tell us,” said Paolo Sbisa, a handler at Zen, who raised him from his puppies. “There is a relationship established and they will do anything that makes us happy.”’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’
Dog sniffs out avalanche survivors and body
Nine days ago, in a nearby pass, the crows flew only 3 miles (2 km) and Zen’s mission was deadly.
Three skiers in remote areas were buried 2300 meters on the Giau pass by a Gaalanche, usually the route for beginners in the scenic rocky rock near the mountain road, which became deadly the day after heavy snow.
Zen and his handling staff were the first helicopter, 10 minutes away from the base. By the time they arrived, witnesses had pulled a 51-year-old man out of the snow. Rescuers found a second victim with a transponder, a 38-year-old man buried 2 meters (6 feet).
Zen’s nose is key to positioning a third skier, a 40-year-old woman buried in snow 3 to 4 meters (9 to 12 feet) – deeper than SBISA’s claim, making the role of rescue dogs crucial when determining the excavation site.
Despite their efforts, she and the second victim were both dead – revealing a frustrating fact: If you need a dog to find you, it might be too late. So, SBISA and other rescuers say that for hikers in remote areas, an important opportunity is to use adapters, foldable probes and shovels, as the best chance of survival is self-help for peers or witnesses. Dogs usually find bodies.
“If something goes wrong, the only weapon Alpine rescuer is searching for dogs,” SBISA said. “We don’t have any other chances.”
Italian avalanche rose 50% in 25 years
According to Aineva Snow and Avalanche Monitoring Service, the avalanche involving people in need of rescue in Italy has doubled, from an average of 30 to 60. During the same period, the number of hikers attacked on average also increased from 65 per year to 110 per year based on the rolling average.
For those who are buried, survival comes down to time. Igor Chiambretti, technical director of the Italian Aineva Snow and Avalanche Association, said the best chance is when a person is released within the first 10 to 15 minutes. If not found within 35 minutes, the study shows that 70% of the victims died of asphyxiation.
Italian rescue dogs always leave the base on the first helicopter. But it usually takes 15 to 20 minutes to reach any avalanche scene. Bad weather extended that window.
Chiambretti said that in Italy, where 80 avalanche dogs were considered active, putting a pair of avalanche dogs in the ski area would reduce the arrival time to five minutes.
Climate change brings more complications
The risk is snow-wet snow, with water content between 3% and 8%. Chiambretti said they were once considered spring snow, but now came as early as December, thanks to the moisture in the air and the warm temperatures.
They are particularly common in the mid-height of mass trafficking and reduce the chance of survival through compressed air bags. Chiambretti said that with more snowfall, the number of people who are fully buried is getting smaller and smaller.
In Italy, on the southern edge of the Alps, facing the Mediterranean, snow dumps have become increasingly common.
“The Mediterranean Basin is considered a so-called hotspot, a region of the planet where climate change, especially warming, is greater than the global average,” said Aineva climatologist Gianni Marigo.
The overall climate change also means a reduction in total snow in the avalanche, as glaciers shrink globally, especially in the Alps. According to a 2024 study, snow depth levels in the southwestern Alps in the Alps have dropped by nearly 5% since the 1980s.
“With humid and warm snowy climates, the consequences of burial will become more severe,’’ while blunt trauma will become more likely to become thinner.
An unlikely survivor
When a rescue dog located in Roberto Ferrino was buried under the avalanche of the Piedmonte Alps in the northwest, lonely remote skiers had been buried for four hours and 40 minutes, far beyond the average survival time.
Until today, his accident happened for seven years, and neither Ferrino nor his wife knew how he did it, just the air pockets formed around him made him breathe. His body temperature dropped to 26 degrees Celsius (78.8 degrees Fahrenheit) and his heart rate dropped to 30 beats per minute.
Despite this, despite warning of the “conspicuous” risk of avalanche, Ferrino did not regret that day’s bravery and bravery. His mistake, he said, was to choose steep slopes without paying attention to the wind.
“If I did the normal route, nothing would have happened,” he said.
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Barry reported on Rome.
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