Bear: Heart of a Hero: The Story of a Man and His Ground Zero Search and Rescue Dog

My husband and I purchased the book as a gift for our son to read on our vacation to Marthas Vineyard. It is a loving tribute to Mr. Shields golden retriver Bear and his mother Honeybear. It highlights the darkest days of September 11,2001 but it also speaks to the loving bond between a man and his dog. This is a story for the whole family. I have now purchased several more copies to donate to our school and our library.

This is a great book about Bear (and Scott Shields) and how they happened to be at the WTC site shortly after the 9/11 attack. The work they did for some time. People that have their doubts about this book should first of all read it from cover to cover and than check the many references this books gives. I strongly doubt that any of the "nay sayers" have actually done so. Unfortunately there is a lot of "hash-wash" going around the Internet about 9/11. This book is a great account of somebody that has been at the sence and wrote about it. Confirmed by other people that were there and sacrified their time and as many of them have learned later, their health...

There have been many erroneous facts, as well as misleading information presented in news and television articles about Scott Shields and his dogs Bear and Theodore. I hope the following helps both readers and the media who may be interested in gaining greater knowledge of the facts of this story: 1.) Scott Shields did NOT "command" search and rescue teams at the WTC. As discussed in the book, Scott was asked to escort a team from Massachusettes onto the pile during the evening of 9/11. Scott responded to 911 as an independent citizen volunteer. Like other citizen volunteers, Scott and Bear were requested to leave the search efforts after several days. 2.)Scott refers to himself as 'Captain' because that is what others called him for many years on the waterfront in New York and Connecticut. This does NOT refer to any military, maritime, or authoritative rank. 3.) Scott has some emergency management training, but he and Bear did NOT have "official" or "professional" search and rescue (SAR) training. 4.) Bear did NOT accompany Scott to the WTC to do search work. He was there because he was always at Scott's side. 5.) Bear has NOT been credited with making any live finds at the WTC. 6.) Bear has NOT been credited with finding more victims than any other rescuer or canine. The number of victims Bear found has NEVER been established. Many highly trained,official search and rescue canine teams stayed and worked for weeks after Scott and Bear left. Presumably, these teams made many sad discoveries. 7.) Scott and Bear did NOT respond to the Oklahoma City bombing rescue and recovery mission. 8.) Scott and Bear did NOT respond to the earthquake in Turkey. 9.) Theodorable is NOT Bear's son. Theodore was purchased by two of Scott's close friends from a kennel near Princeton, NJ during the autumn of 2002. Theo was approximately six months old when he was adopted. At this time, Theodore is NOT a trained search and rescue dog. 10.)Theodore has been made an honorary 'mascot' in the Coast Guard Auxiliary. He is NOT a Coast Guard SAR canine. I hope this has helped. Happy reading!

September 11, 2001 will never be forgotten. The images of that morning are forever imprinted in our minds. While there was nothing I could do, hundreds of miles away from the scene, I watched, horrified, the newscasts that we all remember. It was on one of those newscasts that I watched a dog traversing a precarious "bridge" over the debris mountains. He was a search and rescue canine giving his all in the line of duty. That image gave me hope. I don't know if that particular dog was the one called Bear, but that feeling of dedicated soulful caring that I gathered from the image is exactly what Bear portrayed. In "Bear, Heart of a Hero" you will come to know a very special soul and the story of how he became America's Most Decorated Dog, and a Hero to Humanity as declared by the United Nations. Captain Scott Shields in the former Director of Marine Safety for the New York City Urban Parks Search and Rescue Team. He shares his story of how he and Bear were among the first rescue teams at Ground Zero. This most loving tribute is a remembrance of Bear's life, from his birth (which even then was in the Westport News) to his training on the beaches of the Long Island Sound, from his exhaustive searches of the World Trade Center site to his numerous honors and awards for his heroism. Shields shares the details of Bear's training and their deep relationship that demonstrates a profound understanding of one another. Bear was a heroic dog and his story is a touching one, but it also represents the stories of over 300 other search and rescue canines that went to work on 9/11 and in the weeks after. I don't think Bear would want it any other way. Today, Bear's name and honor are continued through the Bear Search and Rescue Foundation, which strives to provide health care to all canines who worked at Ground Zero and the Pentagon sites; to provide instruction in emergency management to search and rescue teams; and to equip these teams around the country. [...] Scott Shields' story will bring you into the heart of America's darkest days and lead you to witness the intense moments of the tragedy, the deep moments of closure through recovery efforts and the astounding sense of pulling together that brought every volunteer, fire fighter, police officer and rescue worker together for the cause of human need. Shields' story is one that will touch you and never leave you. In the greatest recognition I can conceive of, of its kind, Dr. Jane Goodall DBE, United Nations Messenger of Peace, called "Bear: Heart of a Hero" "one of the best human/animal relationship stories I know of." You can't beat that recommendation but I will say that this book is a must read! Review by Heather Froeschl of BookReview.com.

Bear: Heart of a Hero opens the reader's own heart to new experiences, to giving, and to appreciating what all creatures can give in a time of crisis. Filled with wonderful anecdotes, the book gives such an intimate look at Bear and his relationship with his trainer that the reader feels he is with them through the hardships but also through the rewards that come from helping one's fellow man.