After the miraculous rescue of the four indigenous brothers who wandered through the Amazon jungle for 40 days after a plane crash, the joy in Colombia is not complete because hours go by and in that same sector of the Guaviare jungle the Colombian army still cannot find ‘Wilson’, the tracking German shepherd who was key to finding some things that the boys were leaving, but then he got lost in the jungle. The little brothers are recovering in a hospital in Bogotá, they are out of danger, but the issue of Wilson floods networks and has become another “national issue” in Colombiaforcing military commanders to point out that “the search will not stop”although it is doubtful if this time there will be a happy ending, because the truth is hard: Wilson has been missing since May 18.
The Colombian army’s Twitter account pinned the tweet: “The search is not over. Our premise: No one is left behind. Soldiers are continuing the operation to find Wilson.”
The Engineers sector of the Colombian Army also published on its Twitter account: Wilson was born, raised and trained with us. The operation is not over! Our soldiers continue the search day and night to find our four-legged hero. #OperationHope”.
Commander General Pedro Sánchez Suárez, of the Special Operations Group, confirmed in the last hours that the dog Wilson was with the children when they had not been found. Even the boys themselves, Sánchez Suárez reported, confirmed this information.
According to the Military Forces, Army uniforms saw Wilson on two occasions lost in the middle of the jungle. But in the face of various maneuvers and even the call of his coach guide, the dog did not return.
“We have a saying: We don’t leave a command behind, much less leave Wilson behind.”, said General Sánchez Suárez. The commanding general added: “We are aware of how complex it is to find it deep in a hostile, but also blessed jungle that we have,” explained General Suárez. who added: “We have decided to carry out a strategy to guarantee the continuity of the search for Wilson in the area. For now, I can only say that the objective is to find him, but there will be a reasonable time and space that we will record in the operation and that will indicate how far we can carry out the search for Wilson.
a race hero
Wilson is a Belgian shepherd who was part of a dog team trained in search and rescue. The four-legged specialist followed the trails of fruits that the children ate to survive, as well as improvised shelters made of vegetation in the middle of the jungle.
Rescuers found the footprints of the dog and the children in the middle of the search in “Operation Hope.” The dog managed, despite the difficult terrain and the bad weather that accompanied the search with rain, to find the whereabouts of the four children after 40 days of intense search.
Turkey decided that rescue dogs return in first class and not in the hold of planes
Although his breed is known as the Belgian Shepherd, his real name is Belgian Malinois. This breed describes a strong and robust dog, with a lot of temperament, elegant, well proportioned, natural, square and of medium size. It has a short, smooth coat, hard enough to resist the weather, with a very dense undercoat. This characteristic allowed him to resist in the middle of the Colombian jungle.
According to the general characteristics of the breed, Wilson is a vigorous dog, accustomed to living outdoors, for which it has a coat designed to withstand the harsh Belgian climate. The Belgian Malinois is an enthusiastic and fast dog with a natural tendency to be on the move. Males measure between 61 and 66 cm at the withers and usually weigh between 25 and 34 kg. The females have a size between 56 and 61 cm and their weight varies between 18 and 27 kg. He is a very intelligent and obedient dog.
The Belgian Malinois excels not only in herding, but also in protection and law enforcement, in the detection of drugs, bombs or gas, search and rescue, tracking, obedience, sled shooting, agility, and even as a therapy dog for disabled, sick or elderly.
NT/HB
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The business behind love
Despite the endless number of organizations in charge of rescuing dogs and giving them up for adoption so that families have a new four-legged member, there are people who are still in charge of reproducing these breeds and then selling them and making extra money.
According to publications in Mercado Libre, a Belgian Shepherd puppy ranges between $100,000 and $200,000. Among their posts they “sell” it as “Impressive puppies from the best bloodlines in the World. We have puppies with a high level of training despite their young age (ask for videos)”. They also offer “guarantee” to pay and peace of mind when receiving the dog anywhere in the country.
While some do business with these pets, in the Colombian jungle the search for the canine hero has become a national issue, generating expectations throughout the population.
NT