Author: Webdog

Happy New Year!

Jack, Bailey, Cleo, Max, Lincoln, Zula, Oso, Fritz and all the rest of the KCSD dogs wish everyone a safe and healthy 2022. 2021 was an intense year for KCSD despite the seemingly relentless pandemic. There was exciting success on search missions but also the tragic loss of one of our newest search dogs Ruby. We responded to 49 searches, participated in 106 training exercises and contributed a total of 7,497 hours (227 hours/person average) to help people in distress in Washington. We are grateful for the support we receive from our community and would be unable to continue without […]

Our hearts are broken. 💔

K9 Ruby died after a tragic accident while off duty on Saturday. Ruby was at the very beginning of her search dog career having passed her airscent certification test with flying colors earlier this month. A non-stop tail wagger, Ruby was a gorgeous three year old Dutch Shepherd with infectious enthusiasm who loved to work and loved to play. Ruby was a formidable search team with her handler Jonathan who joined King County Search Dogs in 2006 and has deployed on over 240 search missions throughout Washington. Please join us in sending condolences to Jonathan and give your puppies an […]

jet, Ruby, Lincoln, Myka

Kudos for K9s!

It’s been a busy couple of months for new certifications for some of the KCSD dogs! K9 Ruby and handler Jonathan (top right) successfully completed their airscent certification test last weekend finding both “lost” subjects in a 40 acre area in less than two hours. K9 Jet (top left), K9 Myka (bottom left) and K9 Lincoln (bottom right) and their handlers Mathew, Courtney and Jon have all recently passed their human remains detection certification test. Please join us in congratulating all these dogs teams for the years of hard work it takes to reach this level of performance. We look […]

The nose knows!

Congratulations to K9s Coulee, Gilly, Zula, and Tesla (clockwise from the upper left) along with their handlers Greg, Kris, Jen and Chris for recent trailing re-certifications. Biannual certification and frequent training are essential for reliable search dogs and demand considerable commitment and dedication.

Search Dogs Really Do Save Lives

In the early hours of April 30th KCSD was deployed to look for a missing 87 year old with dementia. At 2:30 AM, after working less than 15 minutes, K9 Lincoln found the subject who was reunited with their family. Please join us in congratulating Lincoln, his handler Jon and support team Brian and Katherine on Lincoln’s first ‘find’ as well as in thanking all the volunteers from KCSD and King County Search and Rescue who responded to the late night call out from the King County Sheriff’s Office and Bellevue, WA Police Department. KCSD dogs and handlers each spend […]

“How to Hike Safely with Your Dog”

Watch a free, on-demand webinar from the Washington Trails Association, REI and the #RecreateResponsibly Coalition to help get you and your dog ready for hiking this summer. “How to Hike Safely with Your Dog” focuses on new dog owners heading out with their ‘pandemic pups’ but has useful tips for experienced dog owners as well. The webinar features experts from the Washington Trails association, Washington State Animal Response Team, a certified trainer, a vet, and even a video with some King County Search Dogs! Link: https://youtu.be/IFD0vUmH3iw

Watch all the KCSD Dogs in action!

If you are COVID quarantining or don’t have 8.5 hours to spare on a Saturday you can still catch up with 10 of the King County Search dogs at a recent airscent training. This 3 minute Google Earth time lapse animation of dog GPS collar tracks lets you see how each dog found its “lost” subjects in one of two 40 acre areas. There is a lot of detail in the video so it is best viewed on a large screen at full 1080p/HD. Link to Video: https://youtu.be/ui5Hm_B7xzM

Tune in to KCSD!

Listen to “The American Canine” podcast to hear Josh Gerstman and Heather Jo Cutting discuss their 20+ years of search dog experience with host Tony McFee. The conversation covers their first exposure to search dogs through to search and rescue becoming their lifestyle. They also describe finding suitable puppies and the training required to become certified search dog team. A great listen!

Happy New Year!

Max, Zula, Natick, Jack, Coulee, Tika, Fritz, Artoo, and all the rest of the KCSD dog noses wish everyone and their dog a happy and healthy 2021. King County Search Dogs deployed on 51 missions last year including a number of multi-day operations involving units from surrounding counties. Despite all the challenges everyone faced in 2020, community support for KCSD remained strong including the largest single gift we have ever received which helped us to replace aging radios. Thank you to all our donors as well as to everyone we meet who wishes us well. It makes a real difference! […]

Search Dogs Save Lives!

What did you do on the 4th of July? King County Search Dogs was called out at 2:30 AM to help King County Search and Rescue and King County Sheriff’s Office search for a hiker in Kanasket Palmer State Park. Starting out shortly after daybreak K9 Natick, Josh, and Brittney (on only her 3rd deployment) found the subject and brought him safely out to the command post by 8AM. Please join us in congratulating Josh, Brittney, Natick and all the other SAR volunteers who responded on a job well done!

Sad Update

King County Search Dogs has lost a trailing great. mADDee was a trailing standard bearer and deployed on over 100 search missions with her handler Joanne during her 13 year career. mADDee had an exuberant and infectious working drive. She introduced countless KCSD recruits to the real meaning of ‘running’ a trail yet she often counted her out of breath support team at intersections to make sure she hadn’t lost anyone. mADDee seemed to have even more fun working when the conditions were harsh. She is fondly remembered having a great time blasting along training trails in heavy sleet with […]