On September 28-29, 2019, canine disaster search teams from across the United States joined veteran handlers and instructors Teresa MacPherson (Virginia Task Force 1) & Deborah Burnett (Tennessee Task Force 1) at the National Training Center (NTC) for the third in a series of four disaster search workshops in 2019. …
With friends and family cheering them on, six new Canine Disaster Search Teams joined the elite roster of urban search and rescue responders at the Search Dog Foundation’s (SDF) National Training Center on Friday, September 27, 2019. These new teams will follow in the foot and paw prints of generations …
On August 24, 2019, a large storm system began moving across the Atlantic, headed for the Caribbean. As it neared the Bahamas, it picked up speed and intensity, growing into Hurricane Dorian, a devastating category 5 storm. Stalling over the Bahamas, Hurricane Dorian wreaked havoc on the island nation for …
Callie was born in November of 2004. She was one of many pups born to Meri Forman’s Juniper Ridge Labradors. Meri, Guide Dogs of America’s (GDA) Breeding Manager since 1994, had been raising Labs personally and professionally for over 20 years. Meri was aware of SDF for some time because …
Sherman came to the Search Dog Foundation (SDF) in March of 2010 with the typical story of “Black Lab Syndrome” – a term used by people who work or volunteer in animal shelters. It describes the phenomenon in which, for some reason, black dogs, even purebred black Labrador Retrievers, are …
On Monday, August 5, newly partnered Search Teams Luis Garcia & Montecito and Fidel Gomez & Gemma were dispatched to a missing at-risk person search in an area called Mesa de Otay near Tijuana, Mexico. Luis and Monte were the first to arrive at the scene and performed a perimeter …
On August 2, 2019, three family members were killed and two injured last Friday afternoon when a cliff collapsed on a busy beach in Encinitas, CA, just north of San Diego. Brent Brainard & Decker and Joe Zakar & Dora (both with San Diego Fire-Rescue Department) responded to search for …
Labs and Friends Rescue in San Diego, CA has donated several canines to SDF’s training program over the years. In June of 2010 they called SDF about Stetson—a strong, solidly built Yellow Lab who passed SDF’s evaluations with flying colors and was ready to begin training right away! After being …
On July 16, 2019, SDF-trained search teams with Los Angeles County Fire Department deployed to two back-to-back calls for help in the LA area: The roof over the lobby of the Lady Luck Casino in Gardena, CA collapsed in the late morning. It was known that there were people inside …
On June 28, 2019, we welcomed four new SDF trained Search Teams to join our national roster. Having passed the leash to the four search dogs to their new firefighter-handlers, these teams are now taking their first steps in their careers together, dedicated to serving the nation when disaster strikes. …
