Canine Heroes Responding to National Disasters
Sonja Heritage, Head Trainer at the National Disaster Search Dog Foundation drops by to talk with Marcie and Lovey about the work they are doing to rescue, train and partner shelter dogs with firefighters and other first responders to find people buried alive in the wreckage of disasters around the world. Sonja talks about their state-of-the-art national training facility. She also provides insightful details about how they screen shelter dogs for these intense, professional jobs and how they train and care for these canine heroes throughout their lifetime. Sonja’s passion and expertise is captivating!
BIO:
Sonja joined the SDF Training Team in 2012 after serving for 15 years with the Fairfax County Urban Search & Rescue Team in Virginia. As a FEMA instructor, trainer and handler, Sonja brings a wealth of experience to SDF. Her numerous deployments to national and international disasters include the U.S. Embassy bombing in Kenya, the earthquakes in Turkey and Taiwan in 1999, the 2001 Pentagon attack, the Space Shuttle Columbia explosion, Hurricane Katrina, and the Haiti earthquake. Sonja leads the training of new Search Dog Candidates at our National Training Center and oversees the training of our Search Teams locally and nationally.