Rookie’s journey to SDF began when he was found as a stray and taken to the Baldwin County Animal Shelter in Alabama. He was in the shelter for about a month, during which time he didn’t have much luck with potential adopters. One interested family took him into the play yard to get to know him a little better, but after interacting with him for a few minutes, they felt he would be too much for their family to handle and moved on. However, when an SDF recruiter stopped by the shelter, it was a different story. Rookie’s high energy, ball obsession, enthusiastic personality and willingness to engage checked all our boxes—she could see this exuberant boy had working dog potential!
Rookie hopped aboard the Four-Legged Kids Bus in Alabama and arrived at SDF’s campus in Santa Paula, California, ready to party! He took to his training quickly, and staff fell in love with his joyful personality. During training, he would bounce around and fly through the air with his toy in his mouth, whipping it from side to side with glee after finding his hidden person. Trainers soon noticed, however, that one aspect of the work didn’t bring him joy: the rubble pile.
His trainers provided confidence-building exercises to help Rookie feel more comfortable on the rubble, but it didn’t help as much as we’d hoped. No matter though—our team got right to work finding career change opportunities for Rookie where his talents would shine, and where he would love every aspect of his job!
Before long, Rookie was on his way to Los Angeles for a career trial with the LA County Probation Department‘s detection team. There, he found his calling, and within just a few short months, he was certified in narcotics detection! His LA County Probation Department handlers let us know just how impressed they were with their talented new teammate, and we were thrilled when they took a trip to SDF to visit and show off Rookie’s new skills!
His SDF trainers were so excited to see Rookie again, and Rookie had a ball doing laps around the canine classroom so he could enthusiastically greet and give affection to all of his old friends. However, as soon as the demonstration began, Rookie was all business, and he impressed his audience as he searched for and quickly located the hidden scent target!
Shortly after he visited SDF, Rookie officially began his new job with the LA County Probation Department as a certified narcotics detection K9. He has deployed several times with the department and is already making a big impact. We couldn’t be prouder of this awesome boy, and we look forward to following along with Rookie’s career and all of his future adventures!
Click here to learn more about our Canine Placement Program!