Team Info
Task Force: California Task Force 2 (CA-TF2)
Agency: Los Angeles County Fire
Level: Certified
Search Dog Info
Breed: Black Labrador
Sex: Male
Born: March 13, 2017
Recruited from a private donor in Lincolnton, GA
Recruited by Greg Strickland
Geno’s owner had high hopes for championship titles in the world of field trial competition, but this rambunctious and eager black Labrador was too excited while on the job! Geno could not stop himself from barking in excitement, and his owner knew Geno was just too loud to do well in that discipline.
Luckily, Geno’s owner reached out to SDF, and recruiter Greg Strickland evaluated Geno and coordinated his transportation to our National Training Center (NTC) in California. Geno passed his evaluation and entered our search dog training program as a strong candidate. At the time, SDF Director of Canine Behavior and Training Mandy Tisdale said, “Geno is everybody’s best friend. He is a joyful and happy guy who starts every day saying, ‘My life is amazing! What am I going to get to do today?’ He loves to work and was born for search and rescue.”
Long before Geno came to the NTC, Los Angeles County Firefighter/Paramedic Sean Quigley heard stories from his father about deploying to New York City in the aftermath of 9/11. Growing up hearing about the heroic work of the two- and four-legged rescuers at Ground Zero, Sean decided he wanted a career helping people on their worst days. After ten years as a first responder, Sean began taking steps to become a Canine Search Specialist and making his dream a reality by being matched with a canine partner of his own.
Once selected as a Handler Candidate for California Task Force 2 (CA-TF2), Sean traveled to the NTC occasionally for over a year, establishing a foundation as a canine handler by working with our training staff and several of SDF’s canine candidates. Impressed by Geno’s energy and enthusiasm for the search, Sean was elated when he was paired with Geno on September 27, 2019, during a graduation ceremony at the NTC!
Upon returning home together, Sean and Geno continued to train, both in their firehouse and on our campus. Access to training exercises was affected by the global pandemic, but the duo worked hard and achieved certification with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) on October 16, 2020. FEMA certification allows teams to deploy to disaster zones with their task forces, which means that Geno and Sean are now on active duty and ready to respond when called upon.
Their first call to duty came on February 6, 2023, when CA-TF2 deployed a 72-member team to Turkey following a deadly earthquake. Sean and Geno, along with five other canine teammates, spent two weeks overseas helping with the rescue portion of the mission. Upon their return, they were able to share lessons learned with others.
Sean and Geno returned to weekly training with their task force teammates to prepare for different disaster scenarios in preparation for the call to action. Then in October of 2024, they pre-deployed with CA-TF2 to Florida ahead of Hurricane Milton, expected to make landfall as a category 2. We wish Sean and Gen, as well as everyone responding to the recent hurricane activity, a successful mission and speedy return!