Welcome back, dear readers, to the blog dedicated to celebrating the stunning work being done in our local nonprofit scene to better our community and further the health of humanity!

Today’s featured organization is Search Dog Resources, a canine search and rescue team based out in Riverside County. For this post, I am taking a different approach than usual. Rather than featuring an interview with one member of SDR, this blog features a combination of several interviews I did with several members. Shelby Baran, the president, Wendy Jeffries, the founder, and members Julie, Debbie, Josi and Erica will explain what the organization’s all about, why they love it and how YOU can get involved. Readers, enjoy!

What is SDR?

Shelby: Search Dog Resources was formed from a group of people that have the same mission in mind, and that is to aid law enforcement to find lost people, whether it be an Alzheimer’s patient, whether it be a child, whether it be a hiker, whether it be somebody that hasn't returned for quite awhile…and we get together two or three times a week to train for those missions.

We have dogs in different disciplines. We have trailing, which works like a bloodhound that needs a scent article and hopefully will be able to follow that scent of that person only. And then we have what they call area dogs, which are non-scent specific and they will find any human scent. It takes two to three years to get a certified dog to gain mission-ready status.

Collectively, how many years of experience would you say you guys have?

Shelby: Collectively, all our handlers, they range in experience from brand new to those of us who have been doing it for over 20 years. And we have four of those such relics, so we probably have, collectively, over 100 years experience.

What does it take to become a mission-ready search and rescue dog and handler team?

Wendy: It usually takes about two years to get to mission-ready status, because there’s all sorts of things that the dog has to pass first, like being introduced to cadaver smells, and different lengths of blind trails, and obedience, and all that. And then in the case of the handler, if you’ve never done dog search and rescue before, you’ve got a lot of things to learn, too. Like man tracking…and map and compass, GPS, radio communications…there’s a big list for the handler to sign off [on], too. 

Debbie: You have to train. You have to train so that you can get certified…you as a handler, first you have to be certified. And you learn GPS, first aid…just all the necessary needs for being at a base camp and going out and searching. And then once you’re certified as a handler, then you can go out and help with searches without your dog, which is a great idea because then it gets you used to the searches. You get a feel for what’s going on. In the meantime, you work your own dog, which has to be certified on his own. And he goes through, first, some obedience tests, making sure that he’s good in the general public, that he’s obedient, that he can do night searches, he can do day searches. And then after that he actually has to do some searches. Once you pass that, then you’re mission ready. You have to re-certify every two years (your dog does), and there are certain tests that we as handlers have to do every two years, to make sure that we’re up to date on everything we need to know.

Why does the work that SDR does matter to the world at large?

Debbie: The reason that the work we do matters is that we help people have closure. Finding, even if it’s a body, is bringing back a final decision for families. They don’t have to wonder what’s happened to their loved ones — they know. So definitely part of our mission is to bring closure. We definitely hope that we’re bringing someone home alive…again, that’s closure…it’s a happy closure. So I think the biggest mission or accomplishment is finding a subject and bringing closure to the family.

What makes SDR special?

Debbie: I think that we have a lot of combined talent here. We tend to get along really well as a team, which means a huge amount when you’re out all day doing a search, that you can get along. Our dogs work well together. We have a good rapport with the police department…they know that we’ll be there when we’re called. So I think our biggest specialty is that we’re dependable and reliable, and we work good together as a team.

We are an all-volunteer program. All our dogs are our own dogs, we pay for all of our own equipment, we pay for the healthcare for our dogs and ourselves. We are completely, 100% volunteer, supported by those that would like to donate to us. 

What is the biggest lesson you’ve learned by being a part of a nonprofit, or being a part of SDR specifically?

Debbie: That you’re doing it all for the non-glory. That this has to be a love, this has to be a desire to go out and help. There’s no glory in it. Most of the time you get sent someplace where the subject isn’t. So, it’s just the love of working your dog and hopefully, at some point, bringing an end or a finish to a family.

And what has been the biggest surprise?

Debbie: The biggest surprise is that I need to learn to read my dog and believe in him. I actually do read him…he tells me when we’ve found someone…but there have been times I don’t believe him. And he’s always been right…so the biggest thing I’ve learned is that I need to believe in my dog. That he has the ability, way more than I do, to smell and discern scents.

What’s either one misconception about search and rescue, or just one thing that people don’t realize about it?

Debbie: I think people don’t realize how much time this takes. People want to come into the program and think they’re going to be certified in just a few months, and it’s actually a long process. There’s a lot to learn. It takes a lot longer than people think. There’s a lot more dedication to it than I think people realize at the beginning. There’s a lot of pounding the ground, a lot of car time, a lot of just learning. You have to be willing to learn, and get up early to get to trainings or be called out in the middle of the night for searches. So I think people need to not look at it as a glorified volunteer situation. It’s a job, and you better get up and love it when you go out because it’s hard, and it’s a lot of work.

Julie: Misconceptions would be that canine search and rescue takes a special breed of dog and [it’s] expensive and you’ve got to start super early, and that’s not true. I didn’t decide until [my dog] was two years old, and she’s a lab mix. 

Tell me about your particular journey with SDR; how it has changed your life, and why you would recommend it.

Josi: I started SDR because Brooklyn needed another job. She was already my service dog, but she clearly just had such intelligence that it was like, either you give her a job or she eats my house. Also, because it dawned on me that we do live in California, and Lord forbid that big earthquake happened, it would be nice if I could find my neighbors. I’m just thinking, it might be kind of cool to be able to help in that way, because I really do believe that each citizen really has a responsibility to at least know something to be able to help.

So what has it been like?

Josi: Fun! There’s nothing like that first time your dog finds someone, even though it’s training. The first time your dog finds someone and you realize, “Wow, I haven’t been fooling myself, the dog actually knows what I’m asking him to do.” That’s pretty cool. It’s also a great bonding experience with you and the dog because you learn to trust the dog while the dog’s learning to trust you. You already had that bond with them before, but now it’s something, you know…it’s just really amazing. You do become a team.

Erica: My first dog that I got into it, I just needed something to do with her. She was very insecure. It was kind of the same thing, the first time, she was kind of a natural at training. It was growing that bond and learning to trust each other throughout that first year that I worked with her, and realizing most of the time, about 90% of the time, she knew the job better than I did. So that was really cool. And now with this dog that I’ve got, she needed a job. 

Why did she need a job? What do you mean by that?

 Erica: Oh, she’s a heeler. And she was going to eat my house. She needed something to do. High energy dogs make fantastic search and rescue dogs, for sure. But yeah, a lot of it’s [that] I want to help the community, I want to be a part of the solution.

So, you have a high energy dog and you give them a job…do you find that it helps? Can you talk about that a little bit?

Erica: So my favorite thing in the morning…and I’m already starting to see it with my dog and this is only her third training morning…as soon as I grab my pants and my boots, she gets into a whole new mindset of “Oh, we’re going to work!” And then my last dog, same thing. We’d wake up super early in the morning and she’d be all grumpy…as soon as I grab my pants, she’s like, “Okay!” and she’ll race me to the front door. They love it; it’s a game to them. It’s the best game in the world.

What motivates you?

Debbie: The love of my dog and the help of people. I love watching my dog work, and I think I kind of have a helper attitude, and so to be able to put those two things together is like, amazing for me. It’s everything I want: I get to go out and help and I get to watch these dogs work and learn how to train them better.

Wendy: It’s fun! Oh, it’s just the most fun you can have with your dog; the dogs are having a blast! 

 It’s a hard question to ask because it’s sort of rhetorical…but what makes dogs so amazing?

Debbie: What makes them [dogs] amazing, for me…I’m a Christian, and for me, my dog shows me the exact example of Christ’s love. He’s totally forgiving, he never is in a bad mood, he’s always there for me. He’s faithful, he’ll stand by you no matter what. So for me, it’s just that this is my companion. These dogs have to be our companions to work as a team. We have to really be able to work together…they have to want to be with you and work with you.

What would you say to someone who’s considering trying this with their dog?

Julie: To find out if this is a good fit for your dog, research online what types of characteristics are important for the dog to have. The best thing I did once I determined the dog has good characteristics for it, and she’s old enough, and I’ve done the regular training — which is important, you’ve got to have good control and good socialization with your dog, that’s just general stuff — then contact somebody who is involved in search and rescue and get some direction. They’ll be more than happy to take a look at your dog, meet your dog, and give you an assessment.

Josi: It’s a great way to get you off the couch, it’s a great way to get them off the couch, and you’re bonding at the same time…I have motivation to get back in shape again, and I get to do it with my dog, so it’s a perfect win-win.

Erica: It’s a humbling experience, too. It’s very humbling and it’s a very rewarding experience. You earn that bond with your dog and it’s so much better when it’s earned, rather than it’s just like, “Oh, you know, I bought you. You’re mine now, so you have to love me.” I don’t know. I don’t know if can be explained until you actually experience it. It’s awesome.

Josi: Come on out, give it a shot. If you don’t like it…the dog did.

Erica: And, you’ll make some friends.

Wendy: If [you’re] in this area, contact our team and come out to a training…bring your dog, and we’ll see if he’s friendly, and likes other dogs, and we can test [him] to see if they tend to put their nose down and smell scent on the ground. Or, some dogs love to run with their heads up, and, “Sniff, sniff, where is anybody?” So, just get started, and then you’ll start learning more and more about what [is] involved, and you can decide whether you’ve got the time and the dedication to do it.

Search Dog Resources is recruiting new handler/canine teams! They are expanding into a new partnership with the Menifee Police Department, and need to build up their forces for that area. If you’re interested, contact (888) 720-1959 or info@searchdogresources.com. If you’d like to donate to the cause, or for more information, visit http://www.searchdogresources.com/.

If you like the images accompanying this story and would like to explore how visual storytelling could help your organization share the heart of its mission, please visit my website, www.soulvoyagerstudios.com, or send me an email at soulvoyagerstudios@gmail.com. To receive regular content regarding visual storytelling and inspiring ways to make a difference in this world, subscribe to my newsletter below!