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Dave Pauli, an animal-handling expert from the Humane Society of the United States, flew into Honolulu from Montana yesterday afternoon equipped with an electronic lure, bait and tranquilizers to help rescue the dog adrift on an abandoned tanker. Expert animal handler
joins saga of drifting dogBy Rosemarie Bernardo
rbernardo@starbulletin.com"We want to help solve the problem quickly and humanely," said Pauli, who has 22 years of experience rescuing animals.
Pauli, director of the regional office of the U.S. Humane Society, will coordinate with society officials from Honolulu and Kauai to assist in the U.S. Coast Guard rescue of the 2-year-old dog, Forgea.
Crew members aboard the tugboat, American Quest, were expected to reach the tanker Insiko 1907 by 2 p.m. today. They were to relay information to the Coast Guard, which will assess whether the Indonesian tanker should be towed or scuttled after crew members try to rescue Forgea and retrieve the body of a crewman killed in an engine room fire.
Pauli, Rebecca Rhoades, a veterinarian and executive director of the Kauai Humane Society and Linda Haller, director of operations for the Hawaiian Humane Society, want to help the Coast Guard if crew members aboard the American Quest are unable to capture Forgea.
A throw net and a fiber-optic scope were other items Pauli brought with him to retrieve Forgea, a mixed-terrier left aboard the tanker after 11 crew members were rescued by a cruise ship on April 2.
"We have everything from hand capture to chemical immobilization," said Pauli.
If needed, Pauli said tranquilizers will be used as a last resort to immobilize the dog.
"If they need us, we'll be available," said Pauli, whose background consists of hazardous materials training and search and water rescue.
But Chief Petty Officer Tyler Johnson of the U.S. 14th Coast Guard District said the Hawaiian Humane Society has yet to contact Coast Guard and military officials to obtain permission to fly to Johnston Island -- a national wildlife refuge that includes shorebirds, turtles and coral reefs.
So far, the Humane Society has only sent the Coast Guard a press release, Johnson said.
Once they reach the tanker, humane society officials need to obtain permission from the commanding officer of the Honolulu port, Capt. Gilbert Kanazawa, to board the vessel, he added. The only way they will be able to board the ship is if it is stable and in perfect working order, Johnson said.
Also, humane society officials will need to hire a commercial airplane to fly to Johnston Atoll and a vessel to sail to the tanker which may take three to four days, he added.
"It's like jumping on the highway and going from Washington, D.C., to Atlanta, Ga., at 10 miles per hour," Johnson said. "It's going to take awhile."
"It's a pretty tall order to get all of these accomplished. Hopefully, the crew of the tug will retrieve the dog so we don't have to worry about it," Johnson said.
Michael Kuo, a friend of Forgea's owner, said today that his family will take care of the dog until it can be reunited with Chung Chin Po.
Po has a new assignment and will soon be boarding a new tanker to Singapore, so "he would ask me to adopt the dog for the near future," Kuo said.
The dog and its owner could reunite if Po's tanker ever makes a refueling stop in Honolulu.
Kuo said it would be good for the dog to live with his family. "I can help him out. Besides that, I speak Taiwanese, that's good for the dog, too." However, he joked, it would be good for Forgea to pick up some English while here.
The Coast Guard hired the American Marine Corp. to take control of the tanker because of its potential risk of running aground on Johnston Island.
If the vessel is scuttled, Johnson speculated, crew members may have to open valves and watertight compartments to sink the tanker. Another alternative is to have military officials shoot holes or use an explosive device to sink the vessel, he added.
Star-Bulletin reporter Treena Shapiro contributed to this story