Tanner was recruited from the Golden Gate Labrador Retriever Rescue (GGLRR) in San Francisco in December of 2012. Originally discovered starving to death and full of parasites, wandering on a golf course in Salinas, CA, a local woman nursed him back to health before taking him to the rescue. Named “Jack” by GGLRR, he was adopted out to three different families in the area but always returned because he was simply too much dog for the average pet owner to handle. Luckily for SDF, staff at the rescue contacted us when they realized that this beautiful Yellow Lab had all the tenacity, strength, and drive to achieve greatness as a Search Dog.
Judy Kreger, the Director at GGLRR explained, “He was always desperately hungry and had no manners or training of any kind, but he was a good boy…VERY smart. He DEMANDED attention and would paw you for attention and bark to get it. He was just desperate to be loved. He also had so much energy that needed to be channeled. As we felt, right from the start, this boy needed a job.” SDF volunteer Jamie Kitz evaluated Tanner and immediately agreed with the rescue’s observation that this wonderful dog has what it takes to make it as a search dog. SDF staff began to arrange for Tanner’s transport from his foster home in Northern California down to SDF’s National Training Center (NTC).
Upon arrival at the NTC, he was renamed Tanner in honor of a young man who helped SDF fundraising efforts following 9/11. When then-ten-year-old Steven Tanner Burhoe, Jr. experienced the attack on the Twin Towers, it gave him a sense of security to see SDF’s dogs on the news and at work with their handlers. Tanner’s mother, Sherri Skanes, explains, “It was hard for a young child to grasp what was happening at the time, but when Tanner saw the Golden Retrievers going through the rubble in New York, it gave him comfort that our pet Goldens would protect him.”
Young Tanner was so inspired that he grabbed an empty Pringles can, decorated his little red wagon with American flags, and went door-to-door in his neighborhood with his Golden puppy Macintosh to collect money for the dogs. Sherri recalls, “When he said he wanted to help the dogs I thought it a sweet notion but when he returned with fistfuls of cash, I thought, how wonderful… but what am I going to do with the money?!” She called the Red Cross, who referred her to SDF, and they drove to our office with the money they had collected. Tanner asked SDF founder Wilma Melville if the money could be used to buy the dogs shoes. Over the next week, they made several trips to the SDF office with donations they had collected and by then an article had appeared in the local paper about Tanner’s efforts that notified people where they could send donations to help. The media attention attracted throughout SDF’s 3-week deployment to Ground Zero helped SDF to take our efforts to train the best Disaster Search Dogs in the nation to the next level.
In April of 2013, Tanner Burhoe was 22 and, after graduating from U.S. Marine Corps boot camp, was able to come meet the dog named in his honor at the NTC. Their first encounter was a wonderful moment, the two seemed to bond instantly, and SDF is extremely proud to be connected to both American heroes.
In the years since 9/11, SDF has grown and been able to place hundreds of highly skilled Search Dogs with task forces around the country to help recover survivors in the event of a disaster. When Tanner graduated from search dog training on December 11, 2013, he joined the ranks of an elite group of urban disaster search and rescue canines.
He was paired with Maddie Warner, a member of Utah Task Force 1 (UT-TF1) and a firefighter candidate that, upon return to Utah with Tanner, would take her firefighter examination. Upon being partnered with Tanner, Maddie told us, “Many members of my family are first responders – my uncle is a retired Los Angeles Fire Chief – and I’m in training to become a firefighter. The day I return to Utah with Tanner, I take my test and move on to the Academy. I searched the internet to find out where I could train for canine disaster search. That led me to FEMA, which directed me to SDF. I’ve been training with the Task Force for two years as a ‘victim.’ Tanner already has a new job in addition to disaster search. He’ll accompany me to our local drag strip where I’m a medic. Tanner and I knew we were meant for each other the second day I trained with him – we connected!”
The day that Tanner and Maddie made their way to Utah to start the next chapter in their careers, Lance Corporal Tanner Burhoe was en route to Japan and Korea – his first deployment. Lance Corporal Burhoe was able to see Tanner one last time while on leave the month prior to his pairing. His parents came to the NTC to watch Tanner and Maddie be paired, and gave Tanner lots of love and well wishes.
Tanner and Maddie trained daily and on May 17, 2014, the team achieved Certification with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), which allowed them to deploy with their task force to anywhere in the nation.
Throughout their careers, the team deployed on the following missions:
- September 14, 2015 – Missing Person Search – Hilldale, UT
- November 19, 2016 – Vehicle Crash – Herriman, UT
- May 16, 2017 – Missing Person Search – Eagle Mountain, UT
- July 4, 2018 – Missing Person Search – Glendale, UT
- August 26, 2020 – Hurricane Laura – Louisiana and Texas
Maddie notified SDF that she retired Tanner on New Year’s Day of 2021, at the age of 10. Tanner had served his community and the nation well and it was time for him to enjoy his senior years. He continues to live with Maddie as a pet in her home and the two continue to enjoy hiking and swimming, depending on the seasons.
We wish Maddie and BOTH Tanners all the best and are grateful for their service to the nation.