BOSTON -- A seventh-grade student in Mansfield, Mass., got a firsthand connection with history and took his language arts project to a new level when he decided to do a book report on search-and-rescue dogs.

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Rhondella Richardson Reports On Rescue Dogs Bear Search and Rescue Foundation Capt. Scott Shields 732-713-6298 sshields@marinesafetyservice.com www.bearsearchandrescue.org

It led to a special meeting with the handler of the first dog to find victims of the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.

NewsCenter 5's Rhondella Richardson reported that student J.P Wilkinson, 12, was completely calm during his class presentation. His guest -- a golden retriever dog named Theodore -- did all the panting.

Wilkinson decided to invite Theodore to his Mansfield school after reading a book called "Bear, Heart of a Hero," a tell-all tale of a canine's call to action after the World Trade Center attacks. It so touched Wilkinson that he called the book's author and invited him to come for a visit.

The New York city dog handler and his pet shared some hard lessons about the largest mass casualty event in recent history. The middle-schoolers heard about how so many dogs and workers at ground zero suffered after the search-and-rescue missions ended.

"No kind of fine matter can I breathe. I start to choke and cough -- different things, spitting up blood," said Capt. Scott Shields.

The dog Bear was the only canine to find a living victim. He died at 13 of from all of the carcinogens he breathed. His "son" Theodore, 3, is now following in his footsteps, as a rescue dog, tracking down kidnap victims, missing children and adults. Shields is still mourning the loss of Bear and using the proceeds from his book to raise money in the fight for more funding for rescue workers.

"I was surprised that they have to do a government kind of training and the government doesn't help them out at all. They have to pay for their own training, their own flights, and it's just not right," Wilkinson said.

Wilkinson raised $1,000 for Shields' foundation, which gives grants to rescue teams in need. As a thank you, Theodore showed off some of his skills for the students at Wilkinson's school, even showing he's even bilingual as he demonstrated that he understood commands in Spanish.

Wilkinson said the visit was so inspiring, he might consider rescue work himself someday.

"If I couldn't become a professional baseball player, then that's what I would try to become next," Wilkinson said.