In June of 2011, SDF trainer Kellee Matthews was contacted by Guide Dogs of America (GDA) in Sylmar, CA, about several dogs from a litter that they felt were possible candidates for our urban disaster canine training program. GDA trains companion canines for the blind and visually impaired. Occasionally, they find that a dog will have too much energy for their program and contact SDF if they show potential for search and rescue work.
Kellee and SDF Canine Recruiter Heidi Miller evaluated Nicholas – one of that litter — for search and rescue work and agreed that he would be a terrific addition to our program.
Says Heidi, “We had an entire litter from GDA to consider for our program – all of these pups being too energetic for guide dog work. It was obvious within moments that Nicholas had the right stuff!”
Nicholas worked with Kellee for several weeks on basic skill-building. While he had a nice, strong tug, his bark – which is incredibly important for a Search Dog to alert his handler to a found victim – was very weak. Since GDA trains their dogs to be companions, they discourage certain behaviors like barking, so re-programming Nicholas was key. Luckily, this intelligent boy caught on quickly and began his formal search dog training the following month.
Less than seven months after being recruited into SDF’s program, and with a new name, Dax graduated from training and met his new handler, Greg Gould, for the first time. The new team had months of training ahead of them in preparation for evaluation to achieve State Urban Search and Rescue Alliance (SUSAR) Certification, which enables them to deploy when disaster strikes. Dax now lives with Greg and his family in Delmar, NY and the two work for the NY State Office of Fire Prevention and Control.
For the next year, the team bonded by working together daily and training with New York Task Force 2, and by July 2013, they had achieved their advanced SUSAR Type I Certification.
They put their training and skills to use when they deployed to a building explosion with teammates Bill Simmes & search dog Bonnie on August 10, 2014, in Schenectady, NY. The explosion occurred in an abandoned house that was reportedly used by squatters, and the teams received reports that one female was possibly inside at the time of the blast. Dax and Bonnie searched all sides of the collapsed building as well as the basement and attic areas. According to Bill, the dogs searched thoroughly and did a great job, but neither showed interest anywhere in the building, so Greg and Bill felt confident that no one was trapped inside.
Since then, Greg and Dax have deployed many times at citizens’ greatest time of need:
- November 19, 2014 – Snowstorm – Erie County, NY
- July 16, 2015 – Parking Garage collapse – Johnson City, NY
- September 4, 2016 – Hurricane Hermine – Long Island, NY
- April 5, 2017 – Missing Person Search – Bethlehem, NY
- June 19, 2017 – Building Collapse – Utica, NY
- September 7, 2017 – Hurricane Irma – Florida
- October 27, 2017 – Missing Person Search – Richmondville, NY
- February 21, 2018 – Flood pre-staging – Malone, NY
- June 18, 2018 – Building Collapse – Poughkeepsie, NY
- August 9, 2018 – Missing Person Search – Waterford, NY
- August 14, 2018 – Flooding – Lodi, NY
- September 3, 2019 – Hurricane Dorian – North Carolina
- September 9, 2018 – Missing Person Search – Schenectady, NY
- September 6, 2020 – Missing Person Search – Blenheim, NY
- February 21, 2021 – Missing Person Search – Castleton, NY
- August 21, 2021 – Hurricane Henri Pre-staging – Long Island, NY
- September 1, 2021 – Hurricane Ida – Orange County, NJ