K9 Scout
Scout is a 9 year old yellow lab and is currently the senior urban search and rescue dog on the team! He has been training to be a live find search dog since he was a puppy. While now he is almost 10, he still moves around with the drive, agility and the mischievous energy of a puppy! Scout truly loves his job and all of the cool opportunities it presents.
In addition to the Idaho Disaster Dogs, Scout is also a member of the Washington FEMA USAR team. He and his handler Chad deployed as a Canine Search Team in September 2020 to the Holiday Farm Fire in Oregon. They worked through the smoke for a week, aiding in the response and recovery efforts.
Scout has also been utilized here at home as well! Scout not only goes to work at the Fire Department with Chad to hang out with “the guys” but also to be available to help at a moments notice. He is always down for a ride in the Fire Engine to help out the City of Coeur d’Alene.
Scout and Chad love traveling together. They have flown many places for training including Seattle (WA), Riverside (CA), Phoenix (AZ) and even as far as Miami (FL)! This training is invaluable to our search teams. When not busy traveling and training Scout enjoys sleeping on the couch and trying to eat anything that flies, even “Spicy Flies” (Bees). Scout is a great cuddler and will never say no to a “butt scratch”.
Scout greets everyone he meets with a smile which coincidently causes him to sneeze as his nose wrinkles up so be aware if you ever drop by to say hi at the fire station. He is truly a skilled live find search and rescue dog and he cannot wait to see where his next mission will take him.
CritterDoc Corner:
The most common thing said to me when I meet new people is "I wanted to be a veterinarian when I was younger." A veterinarian can have a life-long, rewarding career. Veterinary medicine is a much more diverse field than many people are aware of. A vet can be a general practitioner like myself, working in clinics with small animals, large animals, food animals or exotics. A vet can have advanced training and specialize as veterinary dentists, dermatologists, nutritionists, cardiologists, zoologists and many other professions similar to human medicine. A vet can be employed in fields such as the military, research, marketing/sales, food inspection, teaching, public health or wildlife management. There are also many opportunities to work alongside veterinarians as technicians, receptionists and practice managers. So if someone you know is interested in veterinary medicine, the opportunities are vast and I hope you encourage them to follow their dreams like I did.
