Dogs with Jobs - Season 5, Episode 13: Keno, Mentor, Prince

Fernie Alpine Resort, nestled in the high peaks of the Canadian Rockies, attracts three hundred thousand skiers every winter. The danger of avalanches here is real. Keno, an eight year old Labrador Retriever, is the resort’s only certified Avalanche Rescue Dog. One of only thirty-nine certified avalanche dogs in Canada, Keno is the only one to have made a live find. On call twenty-four seven with Mountain Operations Manager Robin Siggers, Keno has to work quickly. If he doesn’t find the victim in thirty minutes, the chances of survival are only fifty percent. Three years ago Keno rescued a ski-lift operator who was buried alive in an avalanche. Keno has to stay in top shape to meet the challenges of his demanding job. Mentor, a two and a half year old Standard Poodle, is a personal assistant to Sheila Powers, whose legs were amputated after an accident in the seventies. Sheila is also deaf, due to a drug she had to take for a life-threatening illness. Although Sheila, drives, lip-reads and can use a specially amplified telephone, Mentor makes the tasks of daily life easier for Sheila, who is currently teaching people-loving Mentor to have more self-control. We see Sheila and Mentor as they head out to buy Christmas presents at a local mall, where the holiday season crowds will be a good test for Mentor’s self-discipline. Prince: Airport Detective (Auckland, New Zealand) New Zealand, a unique country with its own biodiversity, is completely surrounded by water with no land borders. International travelers are monitored closely since they can unknowingly introduce pests and diseases that will upset the delicate balance. Auckland’s first line of defense is four-year-old Beagle Prince. A biosecurity detector at the Auckland International Airport, Prince’s discriminating nose sniffs out forbidden fruit brought in by travelers from abroad - items that may threaten the flora and fauna of the fragile island ecosystem.