In late 2012, the Sacramento SPCA contacted SDF Canine Recruitment volunteer Andrea Bergquist, wife of SDF handler Chris Bergquist, about a potential candidate at their shelter. Andrea evaluated the dog, but he initially did not successfully pass our series of tests. Due to his high energy, he was considered unadoptable and placed on the euthanasia list.
Andrea returned home and continued to think about this dog – he had lots of potential and a unique personality. Unable to shake the thought that there was something special about the dog, Andrea returned to the shelter and introduced him to Chris with the idea that they would save his life and adopt him themselves.
Chris explained, “We became good friends almost immediately. He had an intensity about him you could just feel. However, a search dog he was not. Andrea felt she could do something with him, most likely agility. We brought him home and he began his life as a pet.”
After returning home, their four-year-old son, Jack, named the dog Rocket Booster (Rocket for short), and over the next several months, he began to gain focus and an incredible toy drive. Chris started taking him to trainings with his search dog Kari, and Rocket excelled on the rubble pile. The Bergquists re-tested Rocket for search and rescue in November of 2013, and this time he blew them away. They drove to our National Training Center in Santa Paula to have him evaluated by SDF’s training team and donated Rocket to our program on the spot when Trainers agreed he had what it takes to be a Search Dog.
Rocket thrived in training and was partnered with Mike Stornetta of the Windsor Fire District on August 6, 2014. Rocket and Mike trained daily in preparation for their Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Certification, which they achieved first in 2015 and again in 2018.
Mike and Rocket made their County and District proud when they were called to their first deployment following a plane crash in Santa Rosa on January 28, 2016. A small passenger plane had tragically claimed two lives, and rescue crews on the scene knew that if there were additional passengers to locate, Rocket would find them. He quickly and efficiently scoured the plane wreckage and did an area search but did not alert, communicating to Mike that no one was left behind.
Since then, the team has responded on the following missions:
- August 25, 2017 – Hurricane Harvey – Texas & Louisiana
- September 5, 2017 – Hurricane Irma – Florida
- January 8, 2018 – Mudslides – Montecito, CA
- February 14, 2019 – Mudslide – Sausalito, CA
- January 26, 2021 – Mudslide Pre-staging – Santa Cruz, CA
- August 29, 2021 – Hurricane Ida – New Orleans, LA
We are proud of the terrific work Mike and Rocket have done and are comforted that we have such an experienced team out there and ready to respond when the call for help comes.