Bella had a career any first-responder would be proud of.
The 14-year-old border collie, who left her pawprints on many of the nation's most tragic disasters, died Sunday after an extended illness.
Her handler says Bella always worked hard, always got the job done.
"She was always happy to be working," says the Los Angeles Fire Department's Search Time Specialist Deresa Teller "happy to work for her toy."
Teller first laid eyes on Bella in 1992, when she was just a small puppy.
"The first time I saw her she was only 10 days old," Teller says. "I picked her out of the litter, and of course, she was the prettiest one of the bunch."
Soon, she was learning what would be her life's work.
Teller says Bella was certified for wilderness search when she was just a year-and-a-half. She was qualified for cadaver searches at two. She passed her first disaster test in March, 1995. A month later, she was called to Oklahoma City.
A terrible blast had gone off at the Alfred P. Murrah Federal building, and the verdict for many of the people inside wasn't good.
"In Oklahoma, we knew...there was probably going to be a body recovery," Teller says.
And, for the people involved in the rescue efforts, Bella would be a special blessing.
"Bella was both a 'live' dog and a cadaver dog," says Teller. "Most dogs don't do both."
Bella located a total of four bodies before the search was called off.
When Bella and Teller went back to Oklahoma for the first, fifth and ninth anniversary of the tragic bombing, Bella's valiant efforts were not forgotten.
"We met with relatives of the last few people that she found," said Teller. "People would start crying and saying 'Oh my God, she's the one who found my aunt,'"
In Bella's line of work, life's hardships were front and center. But Bella faced setbacks of her own.
In February of 2001, Bella was diagnosed with cancer in her right foreleg. The cancer was serious and Bella needed expensive treatments, but, community members banded together to ensure Bella was taken care of.
Teller says Bella underwent 18 radiation treatments spanning a month-and-a-half. She was placed off-duty until the beginning of August. When doctors gave her the all-clear, no one could have predicted that Bella would be facing yet another major American disaster - the 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center in New York.
After the planes struck the twin towers, Teller says she and her fellow first-responders were anxious to lend a hand in New York.
"Everyone was excited to get there, but they were holding us back because they didn't know if there would be attacks in downtown L.A.," she says.
After it became clear that she and Bella were indeed needed, Teller grabbed a bag and grabbed Bella. The two, along with a team of Los Angeles, Calif. firefighters, were soon on a plane headed across the country.
"I believe we were the only plane in the sky at that time," Teller says.
Once they got to New York, Teller says the scene was much more drastic than what they had encountered in Oklahoma. She said the power of the blasts had completely obliterated the buildings.
"There was nothing. We didn't even see one telephone or one computer."
Teller says the smell of death was strong. The attacks were deadly, and Bella had to work hard.
Bella located her first 9-11 victim beneath at least 3 inches of concrete dust. She also located the body of a victim who had been crushed inside a car. During one shift, Bella found 25 cadavers in three hours.
Bella was 9-years-old at the time, and Teller says the job was taking its toll.
"She was sure tired when we went back the next day," Teller says. "But after a long nap, she was back to her usual self."
Throughout her career, Bella worked countless building collapses, mudslides, train derailments, earthquakes and wilderness searches.
But even though she's gone, her legacy continues. Teller says she has donated five of Bella's grandchildren to the National Disaster Search Dog Foundation , a group Teller supports whole-heartedly.
Bella battled vestibular disease, a neurological ailment, for the last few years of her life. She also faced ongoing problems with her kidneys and liver. She was put down by her veterinarian Sunday, Mar. 18, surrounded by her family and friends.
"She was the best dog I've ever had," Teller said. "She was my teacher as well as my student."
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