Ellen Perryess, a 9-year veteran volunteer for the San Luis Obispo (SLO) County Animal Shelter, learned about the Search Dog Foundation (SDF) from her friend and now SDF Canine Recruiter, Heidi Miller-Mercer. Heidi has been a canine evaluator for SDF for many years and was helping Ellen learn to evaluate shelter dogs for Search Dog potential.
The SLO shelter is partnered with the Woods Humane Society. As part of the arrangement, Woods Humane Society agrees to rescue 350 dogs per year from the SLO shelter.
In 2009, one of those dogs was an energetic Black Lab that had been picked up as a stray. While at the SLO shelter, Ellen had recognized in him some of the behaviors desired in a Search Dog candidate and made plans to have him evaluated. But before she was able to do so, he was whisked away and sent to Woods Humane Society. Through the help of many volunteers and a little bit of time, Ellen was able to get Woods Humane Society to have this dog evaluated for search and rescue work.
This Lab was named Hayden, after the Congressman who helped launch the extended timeframe that animals are to be held at
shelters. Because of the Hayden laws, strays are held for a minimum of three days before being made available for adoption or possibly facing euthanasia.
Ellen noticed that one of Hayden’s most notable features is matching scars on either side of his face. The scars suggest that sometime in his past someone had tied or wired his mouth shut – probably to prevent him from barking. Luckily for this Lab, the physical scars may remain, but Hayden has moved on to a better way of life.
In January of 2008, SDF held an evaluation training in Santa Barbara where the public came to learn about SDF and how to evaluate shelter dogs for search and rescue work. Ellen was able to transport Hayden to the event so that he could be evaluated and he did so well that he was actually used as part of the training class!
A number of people attending the training event had the opportunity to put what they had learned to the test. After several evaluations, it was determined that this boy showed intense drive and focus, with a bold, undaunted attitude. But there was one thing that might just stand in the way – his looks. Hayden was definitely part Lab, but there was something else mixed in that gave him the appearance of possible pit bull mixed in as well.
When we walk through animal shelters looking for canines that may have what it takes to become Search Dogs, SDF is generally hoping to find Labs, Golden Retrievers or Border Collies. Historically, these are the breeds that consistently demonstrate the boldness, drive, agility and tenacity required for disaster search and rescue. We certainly accept breed mixes, but if we suspect any pit bull mix in a dog, we exclude it immediately. The reasoning behind this exclusion is that the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has determined that if a disaster occurs in a region that has banned pit bulls, they will not be allowed to search in that region. Unfortunately, search and rescue task forces cannot take the chance of losing that resource, so we cannot place canines that appear to be any mix of a banned breed.
Because he tested so well, SDF trainers at the training kennel in Gilroy, CA took a look at Hayden and felt there was enough Lab in him that it would override any other breed. We decided to accept him into our eight-month training program and his first 30 days went beautifully. He demonstrated an insatiable toy-drive, the key characteristic in a Search Dog. That said, our initial suspicions about his breed continued to trouble our trainers.
We were planning on partnering Hayden with a firefighter at a Southern California Fire Department, but soon learned that the 
department would not accept a dog with any “pit” in him. That’s what compelled us to seek a definitive test of the breed, and that’s when we contacted Mars Wisdom Panel MX. Sundowners Kennel, where Hayden is trained, had their veterinarian draw a blood sample and quickly had it sent off to the Mars Laboratory for analysis. The results came back to the kennel within three weeks.
We were dumbfounded when the results came back. None of us would EVER have suspected this mix: Chesapeake Bay Retriever and Curly Coat Retriever! At the very beginning of the report, we read that “all the physical traits of the breeds found may not always be apparent in your dog.” In other words, the breed mixtures can make a dog look nothing like the mixes within him!
Hayden flew through his training and was partnered with a Dallas area handler in January of 2010, but unfortunately the pairing did not work out. Hayden returned to Sundowners Kennel in April of 2011 until another pairing could be arranged. In June of 2011, retired policeman Mike Hargrove, already a member of Texas Task Force 2 (the task force Hayden was previously attached to), arrived at Sundowners Kennel to work with Hayden for the first time.
After a week of getting to know each other and training hard, Mike and Hayden returned to Dallas, where the other handlers are looking forward to getting back to training with Hayden. Mike and Hayden worked hard to achieve State Urban Search and Rescue (SUSAR) Type II Certification on March 3, 2012 and just one month later earned their Type I Certification, making them deployable anywhere in the state of Texas when disaster strikes.
One year later, on April 17, 2013, Mike got the call from Texas Task Force 2 that he and Hayden were needed to help search a devastated area in West, TX. A fertilizer plant had exploded, destroying and damaging dozens of homes, leaving the surrounding neighborhood in shambles. Throughout the night, Mike and Hayden searched an entire apartment complex and were able to confirm that no one was left behind, thus allowing the task force to begin the next stage of their disaster recovery process.
Upon returning home from the overnight deployment, Mike shared, “Hayden searched a little differently than he does in training – he was a little more methodical, as if he knew this was a real deployment with real lives hanging in the balance. Being there at a real deployment certainly gave us a whole new perspective on trusting our dogs and the importance of the work we do. Hayden and Tucker never wavered during the deployment-they had so much energy! Keri and I could not be prouder of these dogs and the strong work they did early this morning. Please let everyone know how thankful we are for their support and know that we are ready for the next disaster!”
That call came sooner than we would have hoped when a building collapsed in Irving, TX on January 20, 2014, and there was no way to know if anyone had been inside at the time. Hayden did a thorough search and Mike was able to announce that thankfully the building was clear and no one had been trapped by debris.
On April 27, 2015, Mike and Hayden achieved SUSAR Re-Certification in Salina, KS, which is required every three years, so that they would be ready for the next call that would inevitably come.
Their third and final mission occurred the day after Christmas in 2015 when 9 tornadoes struck the Dallas area, Garland being one of the worst hit. Four SDF-trained canine teams were deployed to search for missing people. Downed powerlines and widespread devastation made travel difficult, but Mike and Hayden were eventually able to connect with their teammates and join the search. Well over 20 fire agencies responded and all off-duty fire and police personnel were recalled in an all-hands-on-deck effort to help citizens. TX-TF2 cleared 953 structures in 20 straight hours of searching for people in distress. It was an incredible operation and SDF was unbelievably proud to be a part.
A month later, Hayden’s veterinarian discovered a tumor in Hayden’s mouth and the decision was made to medically retire him. Mike continued to take Hayden with him everywhere as his constant companion. Mike and his wife Mary, also a task force canine handler, had five dogs in their active home!
For three years, Mike cared for his canine partner with healthy homemade meals and a lot of love. On January 25, 2020, after being diagnosed with another form of cancer and unable to keep food down, the difficult decision was made to allow Hayden to cross the Rainbow Bridge in peace. Mike told us, “We still have four dogs, but the house feels so empty without him. He touched our hearts deeply and will be greatly missed.”
We are so grateful to Mike and Hayden – for their service to the people of Texas and the nation. With deep appreciation, Hayden will be honored on SDF’s Canine Memorial Wall, where he can watch over future search teams. They have big paws to fill.