‘BUTE CAN READ ME LIKE A BOOK’
Mountain rescuer Christyne Judge quit the police to train search and rescue dogs, set up a dog grooming business and – in her spare time – walk more with her beloved Border collie.
Bruno, my family dog when I was growing up, died on October 22, 1982. I’ll never forget that date. From a young age I had a passion for dogs and always thought I would end up working with them.
I moved to the Lake District when I was 19 and because I used the fells for various activities I wanted to give something back to the community, so joined the local mountain rescue team. Two dog handlers there were looking for ‘ bodies’ – an unfortunate term for people who hide on the hillside for the search dogs in training. I volunteered and remember looking down the hillside thinking ‘I’d really love to do that’.
The team suggested I train my own search dog. Skye, my first collie, was eight weeks old when I took him home, and at eight months he started training to become a search and rescue dog. He took to the training like a duck to water. It takes a minimum of two years if there are no mishaps. Border collies are good options because their lifespan is a lot longer than other dogs and they’re quick to learn.
Skye retired due to injuries when he was nine. When he was 10 I got another little collie and named her Bute, who also trained to become a search and rescue dog.
My only regret with Skye and Bute was not spending the amount of time with them that I wanted to because police shifts made it difficult.
So I left the police last year to start my own business as a mobile dog groomer, called Wuff
Cuts n Walks. Being self employed would allow me to dedicate my time to working with dogs, both grooming and with the search and rescue dogs.
I lost Skye 14 months ago. Bute is now eight and she’s a good search dog, but she’s a pet too. She’s always with me. I went to the Alps last August and we were climbing and walking together. It’s fascinating to be so close with something that you cannot actually talk to – but Bute can read me like a book.
With the dog grooming, there are some homes where she can wander around the garden, but otherwise she’s perfectly happy just sitting in the van waiting. If I have a busy day, we go for a walk between dog grooming sessions – I just love having her by my side and it makes our bond stronger.
In the house she’s very gentle and can be quite timid, but outside she’s full of confidence and independence which makes for a good search dog. She has a lovely gentle nature and is very trustworthy which is important when dogs are working around people.
Working in the police force you deal with a lot of negativity so to get out walking on the fells with Bute would improve my mood dramatically. She keeps me active and being around her is very relaxing – it’s a great way to unwind and also gives you such inner peace. There’s nothing like having a faithful companion by your side that’s so loyal. They’re amazing to be around.
”it takes two years to become a search and rescue dog.“