The severe weather threat Tuesday brought Kenton County emergency teams together for a training. “This is very timely training,” Kenton County Homeland Security and Emergency Management director Steve Hensley said. “We spend a great deal of time planning for events we hope never occur, but on occasion, unfortunately, we know that they do.”As the potential for severe weather loomed, agencies from across Kenton County and beyond came together to train including police, fire, environmental agencies and hospital representatives among others.The teams are preparing for disasters such as tornados, floods, chemical spills, terrorist activities and unforeseen problems.“That’s what this is today, bringing everyone together so the first time they meet is not in the event of a real disaster,” Hensley said. “These kinds of exercises help us practice those skills. So, when those unfortunate real-life situations happen, we can hit the ground running,” said Ft. Mitchell police Chief Andrew Schierberg.

A lot of people added pets to their families during the pandemic, but quite a few "pandemic puppies" lack proper socialization. If you fit in that category, you can get some relief by taking your dog to a training facility.

Heather Gillihan is a certified professional dog trainer with Zoom Room. It's an indoor dog training gym with locations nationwide.

"I could train your dog really well," Gillihan said. "That's not going to do you a bit of good if you don't know how to follow up, right? So we believe that it's more important to empower the owner to train their dog."

Gillihan says the first step to building a bond with your pup is having some empathy for their feelings.

"Think about it from his point of view," Gillihan said. "So he's on the leash. He knows he can't run. Dogs, when they get nervous or afraid, they have two reactions: fight or flight. The fact that the leash is attached means his only option is to fight. So he's not an aggressive dog, but he doesn't know what's coming at him. So his point of view is 'I am stuck. I can't run. So I better sound scary because what if he's a bad dog?'"

If you show frustration with your dog, Gillihan says that makes the situation worse.

"He's already nervous and afraid, and now the person he loves most in the world is fussing at him," Gillihan said. "So it just makes that dog even more scary."

Gillihan says the good news is that you can retrain a dog's brain to like other animals.

"Let him know you have some really good food, like some barbecue, something that he has never had before, but smells amazing. Let him know you have it. But he doesn't get it until we see a dog. So as soon as he sees a dog and before he can react, you say, 'Yes!' and give him that barbecue. Think about what happens in his little brain now. 'Hey, mom, there's a dog. Can I have my barbecue? Because there's one right there.'"

The other common trait with pandemic puppies has been separation anxiety as people return to the office. Gillihan suggests you get a camera in your house. If your dog is panting, sniffing and soiling the house, that's separation anxiety. Otherwise, they may simply lack coping skills, and you can help with that.

"No big hellos or goodbyes," Gillihan said. "Make it non-eventful. You're just walking out. There are things you can do to help them, though, if you're going to be gone for a while. Such as toys, stuff about you, toys, puzzles."

If it is separation anxiety, Gillihan suggests you visit a dog behavior specialist with a veterinary background who can use medications to help your fur baby.

"What those dogs need more than anything is to be able to settle the brain so that they can be retrained," Gillihan said.

Gillihan says it's possible to have a well-rounded dog at any stage in their life. She notes it just may take a lot of practice and dedication through a training regimen.
 

ALTA, Utah — When an avalanche happens, one invaluable tool is avalanche dogs.

Many teams from around the West coast bring their dogs to Utah to get trained at Wasatch Backcountry Rescue’s Avalanche Dog Training school.

“These dogs are a great tool for us,” Andy Van Houten, President of the Wasatch Backcountry Rescue said.

“They've proven themselves valuable over the last several years as we've seen an increase in backcountry users.”

The school brings in students from all over the west coast including teams from Colorado, Idaho and California.

One of the 16 teams are Maia and Zak from Keystone ski resort in Colorado.

“Maia's a year and a half old she's a golden retriever,” Zak bloom, Maia’s dog handler said.

“She's done very well this week.”

The one-year-old is a friendly camera-loving star in the school but while it's fun in the snow for her, saving lives is no laughing matter.

“We've spent all week burying each other in the snow and letting these dogs find us,” Brown said.

“Just hoping everybody progresses with the idea that we can hopefully save somebody.”

Golden retrievers like Maia are among a variety of dog breeds building their resumes.

“What we generally look for is kind of the hunting breed,” Van Houten said.

“We want a dog that's pretty resilient out in the harsh weather and then we also want a dog that's gonna work hard that's trainable.”

Being friendly is also a part of the mission.

“We do a lot of interactions around the guests here at the resort and we do a lot of outreach education so we want dogs that are friendly” Van Houten explained.

“If you're at the resorts come up to say hi talk to the handlers we're happy to explain what we do how it.”

While training on the ground is one thing, training in the air is the mission of the final day of training.

“What we do is we hot load teams down here in the lower mountain,” Van Houten said.

“We fly them up to a site on the hill to simulate getting flown into a live rescue.”

As the week of training comes to a close and the dogs are mastering their air rescue skills, dogs like these will be ready to save lives in an emergency.

Spencer Joseph at KSTU in Salt Lake City, Utah first reported this story.

CINCINNATI —

Among the group of Cincinnati police recruits currently training at the police academy is a former officer who is a testament to the saying "never give up."

Darryl Williams, 57, has been through the academy once before. He graduated from it in 1997 and served on the Cincinnati police department for several years. Williams worked as a patrol officer in district three until 2006 when his oldest daughter accepted a scholarship officer to play at a premier sports academy in Florida. The family moved to Florida and Williams left his dream job behind.

In February, he will graduate from trainee to officer again, this time almost 25 years later.

"I think I still have something to offer. I think I still have something to give back. I left in a time that I really didn't want to leave but I left for my family, but I still feel I have a whole lot to give to the city of Cincinnati," Williams said.

Williams said it was always in his heart to come back to policing. He said he was a community-oriented police officer "before they had that name."

He hopes his determination inspires others who are considering going into policing, especially as police recruitment has grown more difficult.

"Never give up. I applied since leaving the department at least five or six times. Never gave up, never gave up hope," he said. "Hopefully other people will see if he's 56 or 57 and can do it, maybe at 35, 34 I can do it."

Williams has lost thirty pounds since training started. He said the physical challenges have been different this time around.

"I used to be the number one or two in running, pushups, sit-ups. It's sort of humbling to come in and now I'm struggling," he joked.

He said his fellow recruits are respectful but tease him about his age.

"They all call me 56 but I guess they're gonna have to change it 'cause I had a birthday in October. I'm 57 now," he said.

Lt. Col. Mike John, one of the department's assistant chiefs, graduated in the 83rd class with Williams.

"If I even go back 25 years, he wasn't the youngest in the class then. He was someone that we all looked up to. He was actually somewhat of a father figure to us," John said. "He is the type of person we want policing the streets of Cincinnati."

John said Williams used to pray for the class every day. He was also admired for his physical fitness.

"We used to call him Big Daddy," John said. "We actually changed his nickname when we started doing defensive tactics and ground fighting. We called him Big Damage."

Williams said he has learned a lot from his fellow recruits, especially on the technology front.

"I've never owned a laptop before so I had to get one for this class. Everything we did was hand-written, complaints, everything," he said. "I had been typing for days, wasn't saving anything. So one of my recruits had to say 'Mr. Williams, every now and then you have to save something.'"

He is sharing his knowledge and experience with the younger recruits, many of whom are half his age.

"I think I can help the young people understand exactly what they're getting into. I think a lot of them don't really understand what they're about to see. Some of the things they're going to see and do, they're never going to be able to take out their mind," he said.

A lot changes in 25 years, but John said Williams has remained the same.

"The temperament he has now is exactly the same as he had back in 1997 to the point where he left in 2006. He's not changed," John said. "He is the absolute servant leader."

Pets — like their humans — had to adjust during the pandemic.

They got used to people being at home most of the time, just as people learned how to juggle caring for their pets while also doing their jobs remotely.

But now, with COVID-19 vaccinations picking up, if you have a pet, it's time to prepare them for your return to normal — whatever that may look like post-pandemic.

And, according to some animal experts, it's going to take time for them to adjust.

Remember, they had to make adjustments too: Some pets had to make a real adjustment to the sudden 24/7 intimacy of people being home all day, especially in households with small children.

Others were adopted during the pandemic.

"The overall percentage of US households owning pets notched up to 56% in 2020, with 44% of households owning dogs, 25% owning cats, and 12% owning other pets (including fish, birds, small mammals, and reptiles/amphibians)," according to Packaged Facts, a market research firm.

"Among current pet-owning households, 35% adopted pets in the 12-month period ending February 2021," Packaged Facts said.

That means millions of pets have no sense of what "normal" life looked like.

Start leaving them alone for a few hours at a time: So, if you're planning a return to the office, Dr. Douglas Kratt, president of the American Veterinary Medical Association, recommends you start by leaving your pet for two or three hours at a time daily, so they aren't caught off guard when you're gone for eight or more hours a day.

... but don't fully change routines just yet: While you may be changing your routine, Kratt told CNN it's helpful to keep pets as close to their routine as possible and make sure that "you're not forgetting things because you're into a new routine."

Dr. Dana Varble, chief veterinary officer for the North American Veterinary Community, suggests pet owners keep some of the habits formed during the pandemic, such as taking their dogs for a walk during their lunch breaks.

Consider a pet sitter: If your new normal doesn't include time for that, Varble said it may be time to re-hire the dog walker or pet sitter you had before the pandemic, which can then give your pet some familiarity.

"In the last several years we've done a lot of research that's shown that a lot of animals have a much more significant and longer lasting memory than we thought that they did," Varble said.

Realize that readjustment times will vary: Pets will need about four weeks to adjust to a new routine, Varble said — but noted that different animals are more adaptable than others.

Cats, for example, she said, need longer and may show signs of stress for up to six months.

"Although they're a lot more independent, I think that they really, really thrive on routine."

Regardless, if you see unwelcomed behavior in your pet — including vocalizing or shredding of toys — Varble said "it's really important" to stick with your routine. But, if you notice more harmful behavior, it's OK to correct it, she said.

Leave some distractions around: Ingrid Johnson, certified cat behavior consultant at Fundamentally Feline, suggests cat owners find fun distractions for their cats while they're gone, such as leaving cat videos or easy listening music on.

"We offer them these different novel things so we're leaving, but there's something fun to do," Johnson told CNN.

She also said food puzzles are a great way to distract cats while making sure they're able to eat in accordance with their internal clock.

"It gives them comfort to be able to control access to all their basic needs," Johnson said, urging the importance for cats to have as much consistency as possible and that small environmental changes can cause them to stress.

Keep an eye on any behavioral changes: "Cats will generally symmetrically groom themselves bald in easy to reach areas when they're anxious. Grooming is a comfort behavior," Johnson said.

While grooming is not a big concern, Johnson said if cats are going to the bathroom outside the litter box or if they are not eating, that could be a medical emergency.

Remember your bond with your pet: Some of the changes of returning to in-person work and school will stress us out just as much as it stresses our pets.

That's why experts say it's important to remember you need your pet as much as your pet needs you.

"Pets can help us manage our stress and keep our calm," Varble said. "I think it's still important you celebrate your bond with your pet, your human-animal bond, as a great source of stress relief in your life."

The future of the Summer Olympics is still up in the air, and could indicate the future of the 2022 Games in Beijing.

Even with all the restrictions and obstacles, athletes are pushing forward and finding ways to train.

“I started skiing on the World Cup Tour when I was 15 years old, and made the Olympics when I was 17. Now, I’m here training for the 2022 games in Beijing,” Tess Johnson, Olympic mogul skier with the U.S. Freestyle Ski Team, said. “We dedicate our lives to this sport. We eat, sleep, breathe mogul skiing and that's what we have to do to be the best.”

Opportunities to train and compete have become less frequent. On this day, mogul skiers on the U.S. Freestyle Ski Team were practicing on what they call an on-snow training day in Steamboat Springs, Colorado.

“Our goal is to just continue training until we just don't train anymore here on the snow in North America,” Matt Gnoza, the U.S. Mogul Team Head Coach for U.S. Ski and Snowboard, said.

The pandemic has changed how they are able to train.

“We’re used to skiing 12 months a year. From March 2020 to December, for eight months, we didn't have any access to a full length mogul course for our training,” Gnoza said. “We had a schedule going into the year of 12 World Cup events. At this point in time as we approach February, we've had three of the 12. We've seen a large number of events canceled because of COVID and because of travel restrictions.”

Now the team operates in a bubble -- traveling where they can, when they can to get as much practice as possible without interacting with others outside the bubble. It's similar to how the NBA operated its basketball season in 2020.

“When we bubble in to a training camp or bubble in to a competition, we bubble in as a team and we become really dependent on one another in those bubbles,” Gnoza said.

“We can’t go to gyms, we can't go anywhere in public. And that strength training is a huge piece of our careers. It’s how we stay strong, it’s how we avoid injury,” Johnson said. Instead of gyms, it’s garages, outdoor spaces, and using things around you to get in training.

“We bring bands, TRXs, sometimes we bring weights and plates which is very heavy,” Johnson explained. “One of my teammates and I are using towels to pull up and try and get some resistance.”

Training this year has been different for these young athletes.

“This past year especially was difficult to find the motivation and keep going when so many things were getting canceled. It's just part of it though. It’s part of any passion,” she said.

Johnson started competing at 9 years old. Participating in the Olympics has been her dream since she was a young teenager.

For now, these winter athletes are training day in and day out, looking at the future of the Summer Olympics this year to indicate whether or not their competitions will take place.

“We’re looking at our Olympic friends in the Summer Games and hoping for them that the games do happen in the summer of 2021 in Tokyo. That would be a really positive sign for Beijing in 2022,” Gnoza said.

“As long as it happens and we get that opportunity to ski in another Olympics, I’ll be a happy girl,” Johnson said.