Team Info
Task Force: California Task Force 4 (CA-TF4)
Agency: Oakland Fire Department
Level: In training to certify
Search Dog Info
Breed: Labrador Retriever mix
Sex: Male
Born: March 6, 2022
Recruited from private donor in Utah
Sponsor: Joel Gambord
Ozzy was raised since puppyhood in a Utah home until circumstances forced his owner to move. Unable to take Ozzy with him, he placed him for adoption in the local paper instead of surrendering him to the animal shelter. An SDF recruiter noticed the ad and arranged to evaluate Ozzy, who passed his performance screening with flying colors.
After his impressive screening, trainers called Ozzy the “real deal,” and he continued to live up to that prediction. He is a powerhouse of a working dog and quickly learned not only to bark for his toy, but to give multiple barks into the mousehole when searching barrels. He steadily progressed to large barrel fields and buildings and continued to improve his alert as he advanced to searching on rubble. Outside of search, Ozzy learned the foundations of obedience and engagement with collaborative toy play and had a blast learning how to drop his toy on cue for more rounds of tugging.
Trainers loved working with Ozzy and saw great things in store for this lovable boy. Ozzy graduated from search training and was paired with Christine Lopes of Berkeley Fire, California Task Force 4 on September 7, 2024.
Christine’s journey to becoming a first responder began with her perception of firefighters as strong, both mentally and physically, and she saw this career path as a way to engender those traits in herself. After her grandmother died of cancer, she was left with a deep desire to help others in need. She remembered Wilma Melville’s story of a man who kept returning to the site of the Oklahoma City bombing, looking for answers. Christine empathized with that feeling of helplessness, inspiring her to follow a path where she could use her skills to make a difference. She had heard about SDF through her coworker, Rudy Valencia, another SDF handler, and decided to pursue canine handling.
After working with Ozzy in the Midpoint Assessment, she began to develop an attachment to the big, friendly Labrador, and their bond began to grow. Christine says, “I thought, this is going to be such a punch in the gut if I don’t get paired with this hurricane.”
Now that they’re partners, Christine has short- and long-term goals for their team. She wants to pass their FSA and CE tests and be able to deploy with their task force. However, Christine says her most important goal is to foster a happy and secure relationship with Ozzy. “If we don’t have a safe and trusting relationship where Ozzy can be happy, then all the rest doesn’t matter.”
We couldn’t agree more, and we can’t wait to see all this team will accomplish as they work to grow their lifelong bond.