Category: Milestones

National TV spotlight on KCSD search dog!

Who was that dog?? ABC/ESPN, KOMO4 recently included a wonderful short profile of our very own K9 Lincoln. It aired during their broadcast of the 25th AKC National Championship Dog Show where Lincoln was a great ambassador for all hardworking SAR dogs even though he was an over-excited hot mess the one time he entered a show ring. You can see the video here: https://www.kcsearchdogs.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/AKC-NC-Lincoln-SEGMENTsmall.mp4 We are very proud of Lincoln and all his KCSD teammates and we are especially grateful for the support we continue to receive from the community that they serve. Best wishes to everyone for a […]

Thank You!

As King County Search Dogs celebrates 30 years of service to the community we want to acknowledge and thank everyone who has made this great team possible including the many generous donors, King County Sheriff’s Office and the rest of King County Search and Rescue, all the past and current KCSD members, and especially all the wonderful dogs. Best wishes to everyone for a safe and successful 2026!

Double Heartbreak

Tragedy can strike without warning or mercy: We are heartbroken to share that K9 Max died suddenly last week. Max was a beloved 7 year old long-haired German Shepherd; a gentle giant whose thick coat made him appear much larger than his 90 lbs. A highly accomplished search dog, Max was certified in airscent, land and water human remains, crime scene and successfully located the lost on more than one occasion. Max and his handler Linda responded frequently to searches across western Washington where they earned the love and respect of many in the SAR community. Watching Linda and Max […]

500 Club!

During our recent 2024 holiday celebration we honored three members who have each surpassed 500 search missions: An amazing milestone! Joan Hitchner, Heather Jo Cutting and Greg Varney (L-R) have responded to 503, 529 and 614 callouts, respectively, from the King County Sheriff’s Office since joining KCSD. 500 missions is an extraordinary achievement for any SAR volunteer especially a K9 handler. Please join us in congratulating the inaugural members of the KCSD 500 Club; Greg, Heather and Joan for their combined 79 years of commitment as well as thanking them for their continuing community service.

Raise a glass for K9 Syrah!

WOW! On Saturday K9 Syrah and handler Brittney found their first “lost person” in under 5 minutes and the second at 45 minutes to pass the KCSD air scent certification test well within the two hour limit. Brittney is a graduate student in Applied Animal Behavior & Welfare at Virginia Tech and has a Certificate in Applied Animal Behavior from U. Washington. Highly motivated K9 Syrah is a Belgian Malinois adopted from Woof Project Rescue that loves her reward toy. When the team was asked which end of the leash is smarter, Brittney looked at Syrah who just smirked. Let’s […]

Farewell K9 Oso

We grieve: K9 Oso died peacefully at home last week after a conspiracy of health problems overtook him far too young. Named in honor of the tragic 2014 Snohomish County landslide where his handler Heather Jo Cutting worked along side so many other rescuers, K9 Oso lived up to his name responding to over 160 search missions and making several important finds during his career. He earned KCSD and National Search Dog Alliance certifications in airscent and human remains detection and also used those skills searching from boats and in the snow. Whether jumping out of a helicopter at first […]

There are no words…💔

King County Search Dogs mourns the loss of a legend. K9 Jackson, known to all as “Jack!”, died suddenly last week after a decade of service to our community. Full of life and a bit full of himself, Jack was a beautiful German Shepherd Dog who was certified in wilderness airscent and human remains detection. Jack was an instant hero when he found a missing 9 year old girl on his very first search. He was so happy to find her and so eager to play that it startled the girl and other searchers had to chase after her while […]

KCSD Dog Wins AKC Excellence Award on National Television

Wow: We are so proud to report that our very own K9 Lincoln has won the 2022 Search & Rescue Award for Canine Excellence (ACE) from the American Kennel Club Humane Fund. Winners were announced last Sunday on an hour long ESPN2 special that included video profiles and commentary on Lincoln and the winners in the uniform services, support, therapy and companion categories. Lincoln is an energetic flatcoated retriever certified in wilderness airscent and human remains detection and was recognized for finding at-risk Alzheimer’s subjects twice in the last eighteen months. Lincoln’s handler Jon noted that it is a tribute […]

Congratulations Team Riley!

We are excited to report that K9 Riley and his handler Mary passed their wilderness airscent certification test by finding two ‘lost’ subjects in 40 acres of woods with plenty of time to spare. It was a challenging wet and cold day with gusty winds that were constantly changing. At one point the soap bubbles Mary was using to check the wind started moving to the north but before hitting the ground they reversed and moved ten feet south. K9 Riley was not fooled for a minute. Such a good dog!

Canine Kudos for Max!

Join us in congratulating K9 Max and his handler Linda for passing the National Search Dog Alliance (NSDA) Land Human Remains Detection certification test yesterday. NSDA certification is demanding for both handler and dog but helps establish a search dog team’s credentials for the assignments King County Search Dogs receives. The test is a thorough examination with five parts including searching wooded areas, inside buildings, along roads and vehicle exteriors. Max is a gorgeous german shepherd who certified in wilderness airscent searching earlier this year and we are so very proud of what this team has, and will, accomplish. Go […]

Commander Riker is ready for duty!

Join us in congratulating K9 Riker and his handler Brian for becoming the newest certified King County Search Dog airscent team after passing their field test today! Riker, a black German Shepherd known for boldly going where no dog has gone before, bounded through 40 acres of forest and found both his “lost” subjects well within the two hour limit. It takes years of training, practice and patience to certify a search dog and we are very proud of Brian and Riker’s accomplishment. Look for them at the next KCSD mission where they will be seeking out new subjects and […]

Search Dogs Save Lives!

GOOD DOG LINCOLN! On June 21, 2022 five KCSD dog teams responded to a search for an 87 year old with Alzheimers missing overnight in thick woods northeast of Seattle. After working less than 45 minutes K9 Lincoln, Brenna O’Leary and Lincoln’s handler Jon found the subject in steep terrain less than half a mile from their house. While we give our dogs the headlines, the full story is that a great outcome like this results from the teamwork of over twenty five volunteers from several King County Search and Rescue Units: Searchers from ESAR and 4×4 in addition to […]