AWARD-WINNING rescue Dog Cracker has died in Newcastle, at the advanced age of 14, after a short illness.The golden retriever, who had lived and worked with his owner, rescue dog handler Neil Powell, was specially trained for disaster work and helped locate survivors and victims of the Izmit earthquake in Turkey in 1999, which killed over 45,000 people.
Mr Powell told the Mourne Observer that the death of Cracker would leave a “big gap” in his life.
He said: “I’d had him from he was eight weeks old, having gone over to England to collect him and his brother specifically.
“Cracker was a very special dog. He’d had a sore leg for the past three weeks and the vet told me it was broken and the calcium had been eaten away by the cancer.
“But not once did Cracker let on, or growl or complain. You would not have known. He was that type of dog.
“He will be greatly missed,” Mr Powell added.
The Search and Rescue Dog Association (SARDA), of which Mr Powell formed the northern branch, described the dog as one of the “heroes” of the Turkish earthquake in 1999.
A statement said: “For his untiring heroism during the rescue effort with the UK Search and Rescue team, Cracker was awarded the PDSA Gold Medal Award for Gallantry and Devotion to Duty.
“He had to endure six months of quarantine following that deployment but had since been involved in many search operations throughout Ireland. He was also later awarded the Golden Borneo Award Gold Medal in 2000 for his heroism.
“A real gentleman of the doggy world, Cracker will be sorely missed by us all but especially by his owners, Neil and Kate Powell.”