Team Info
Task Force: California Task Force 7 (CA-TF7)
Agency: Sacramento Fire Department
Level: Certified
Search Dog Info
Breed: Black Lab
Sex: Male
Born: October 5, 2020
Recruited from a private owner
Recruited by Trevor Lawrence
Sponsor: Maria Hindenes and the Hindenes Animal Trust
Otter was raised since puppyhood by his owner, who hoped to train him as a hunting dog. When his work schedule changed, he no longer had adequate time for Otter. He reached out to an SDF recruiter, who tested him and quickly realized his potential as an urban search and rescue candidate.
Once on campus, trainers quickly fell in love with Otter’s big head and adorable personality. Otter is a very biddable pup who loves a good game of retrieve and will toss the toy from his mouth to your feet, hoping to get another throw.
Naturally collaborative, Otter was our agility demo dog for our first-ever Open House and was beyond fantastic—focused on his trainer, mastering the obstacles, and not distracted by the huge crowd. Our lovable boy is a joy to work with and will continue his training with his partner, Brandon Budd of City of Sacramento Fire, California Task Force 7, paired in September 2023.
Brandon Budd has wanted to be a firefighter since the age of five. His fascination with the job evolved from an infatuation with fire engines as a child to a desire to help his community as an adult, and he has been in his chosen career for over seventeen years.
After working with canine handlers in his department, Brandon realized that dogs could become a part of this role and pursued training to become a canine search specialist. He was paired with his first SDF canine, Josie, in 2015.
Working with a large dog like Otter has been a big change from petite Josie, but Otter has stand-out traits that make him unique, such as his slow, methodical search style and clean execution of the “drop” command. For a big boy, Otter is very gentle and is great with Brandon’s family as he adjusts to his new place in their home life.
After months of hard work, the team achieved FEMA certification in Sacramento on March 9, 2024. This makes them eligible to deploy nationwide with their task force teammates should the need arise.