Team Info
Task Force: California Task Force 8 (CA-TF8)
Agency: San Diego Fire-Rescue
Level: FEMA Certified
Search Dog Info
Breed: Black Lab
Sex: Female
Born: November 29, 2015
Recruited from Sacramento County Animal Care & Regulation
Recruited by Kirsten Fulk
Sponsor: The Joel and Dena Gambord Family
Dora was picked up as a stray by Sacramento County Animal Care & Regulation in Northern California in the fall of 2016. Shelter staff, knowledgeable about SDF and our training program, noticed how ball-crazy Dora was and immediately called us about evaluating her as a potential candidate. They contacted Sylvia Stoney, Canine Recruitment Manager at SDF, who asked Regional Canine Recruiter Kirsten Fulk to take a look since she would be driving through the area. After meeting Dora, Kirsten said she knew right away she had potential for this field.
After a successful evaluation, Kirsten adopted Dora and brought her down to SDF’s National Training Center in Santa Paula, California, in December 2016. Our training staff screened Dora and, showing her innate skills on a rubble pile, she was accepted into the program that very day.
Beginning her training for Urban Disaster Search and Rescue, Dora learned to focus her high energy and channel it into the search game. She loves to play tug and has a great bark once she locates the “victim” hiding in the rubble!
On November 3, 2017, Dora was paired with San Diego Fire-Rescue Engineer Joe Zakar. The two proved they were well-suited for one another throughout the two-week Handlers Course they participated in at SDF’s National Training Center.
Following graduation, the new team returned to San Diego and immediately began working with their California Task Force 8 teammates in preparation for certification with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). Achieving certification is a requirement for all US&R search teams, and they must be assessed every three years to ensure they are ready for the difficult job they perform on a deployment. After months of concentrated training sessions, Joe and Dora successfully achieved their initial certification in October 2018 in Riverside, CA, and most recently recertified in October 2021!
By the next summer, their first call to action occurred when a cliff collapsed on a busy beach in Encinitas, CA. They quickly responded to the incident to join other rescuers who were able to help bring four people to safety.
In March 2021, a structure collapse required three San Diego teams to assist in a search for anyone who may have been inside at the time the building gave way. Fortunately, it was determined that no one was on site and trapped inside the debris.
Until the next mission, Joe and Dora train together daily, and have weekly trainings with their task force teammates to keep their skills sharp and stay prepared to help their community.