This is somewhat related. When discussing ways to signal for help with our scouts, we talked about being sure to have whistles, mirrors, be big and bright, etc. One of the scouts, who I didn't give enough credit to at the time, said he would just carry a dog whistle to call for a highly trained rescue dog. That took me by surprise. I shoud have commended him for thinking outside the box, and then asked him what he would do if he were at a park 500 miles away and the dog were at home. Instead I told him that it was a bit far-fetched. Shame on me. I won't make the same mistake again.