Blog Archives
Sponsor Me?
Yes!
Joined Team:
January 2023
Born:
July 2021
Discipline:
Air-Scenting
Breed:
Border Collie
Level:
L2 – Route and Path
Gender:
Male
Alert:
Bark by the misper
Handler:
Sian Jones
Reward:
Tugging with his favourite ball on a bungee
More about Weeble:
Weeble was born to a couple of incredibly friendly and outgoing working Border Collies and he definitely inherited these traits becoming one of the teams main cuddle monsters.
After joining the team in January of 2023 Weeble aced his initial assessment and managed to complete his Stage 1 and 2 tests in only a few short months. Now that he’s got the basics of finding mispers and alerting his handler Sian the goal for Weeble is to keep on increasing the distance he’s working over so he can get as much practise in as possible.
When he’s not enjoying running around really fast at SAR training Weeble relaxes by running around really fast at agility. He isn’t all go however and when he isn’t running around he enjoys throwing himself into anything that goes splash, especially if there is someone to cuddle afterwards.
Would You Like To Sponsor Me?
Sponsor Me?
Yes!
Joined Team:
July 2022
Born:
April 2021
Discipline:
Air-Scenting
Breed:
Standard American Bulldog
Level:
L2 – Route and Path
Gender:
Male
Alert:
Bark at handler
Handler:
Sam Nantes
Reward:
Tug-of-war with his special squeaky toy
More about Boomer:
Found wandering the streets after being abandoned at 8 months old, Boomer was adopted by Sam. After settling into his new life Boomer had to work very hard on his manners as he struggled to contain his love for everyone but after about half a year he managed to pass his Initial Behaviour and Obedience Assessment with top marks.
Since then he’s been learning the ropes of how to pick up a scent and follow it back to a misper, to alert Sam when he’s made a find and finally to lead the search team back to the misper. While not something we train our Search Dogs to do Boomer has also learned to give mispers lots of kisses which they all appreciate to different degrees.
Outside of work Boomer’s hobbies include snoozing, being the centre of attention, trying to convince people he’s actually a lap dog and any game that lets him burn energy off.
Would You Like To Sponsor Me?
Sponsor Me?
Yes!
Joined Team:
September 2019
Born:
June 2019
Discipline:
Air-Scenting
Breed:
Hungarian Wire Haired Vizsla
Level:
L3 – Area
Gender:
Female
Alert:
Jump at Handler
Handler:
Andy Willis
Reward:
Dehydrated Liver
More about Willow:
As a descendent of a long line of working gun dogs from Lincolnshire and after being exposed to the teams older dogs working from just 8 weeks old Willow was always going to be a SAR Dog success story.
She passed her Behaviour and Obedience Assessment with top marks and then started training properly going through each stage with ease and after qualifying as a Level 2 Search Dog went and passed her Level 3 qualification just six months later. The only set back Willow’s handler Andy experienced is that she decided a jump alert is better than a bark meaning Andy has had to learn to love the 30kg Willow flying into him at 30mph when she’s made a find.
When she isn’t busy searching for missing people Willow spends her down time finding everything else from missing phones to wallets or helping with chores like emptying the washing machine to fetching the post. Willow does however have a darkside and is in fact a legendary international sock thief…
Would You Like To Sponsor Me?
Joined Team:
December 2016
Retired:
2024
Born:
October 2012
Discipline:
Air-Scenting
Breed:
Labrador
Level:
L3 – Area
Gender:
Male
Alert:
Bark at Handler
Handler:
Tony Rainbow
Reward:
Cheese!
More about Bruce
“My name is Bruce and I’m a ‘natural’ blonde Labrador. I love cheese. I just love to work alongside my human to help find lost and vulnerable people. I train regularly with the Berkshire Search and Rescue Dogs team. I love cheese. I’m good with everybody and I love children. I have powerful, big paws with very little in the way of fine motor skills! I love cheese. I don’t chase cats, squirrels, rabbits or birds, and I ignore horses and cattle. Did I mention I love cheese?”
Bruce is a much loved member of our family and a reliable, hardworking asset for Berkshire Search and Rescue Dogs. We got him when he was 12 weeks old. He is a one in a million dog!
At his home in Windsor, Bruce lives with his dog brother Stanley, who is a young black Labrador – they spend lots of time playing with toys and snuggling up together! At home Bruce is calm, considered and gentle with a super personality. He loves to be with people and will let you know if you’re not paying him enough attention! A very obedient and steady dog, he’s is a joy to take shopping or to the pub – however, he can get himself into trouble if there is any food lying around on the floor – he is after all a Labrador!
At work with the Search team Bruce is focused and very driven. He will get very excited if he sees me pick up my boots as he knows he’s going out to work or to a training session. Bruce is a Level Three Search Dog and he can range or distance himself from me quite extensively whilst looking for people. Because of this Bruce wears a fluorescent search jacket which has bells and a light on it so that I know where he is at night. He’s a strong and fit dog allowing him to search effectively for over 2 hours at a time in all weathers, covering over 50 acres of woodland during a search is not unusual for him.
Sponsor Me?:
Not Yet
Joined Team:
October 2018
Born:
August 2017
Discipline:
Air-Scenting
Breed:
Sprocker Spaniel
Level:
L3 – Area
Gender:
Male
Alert:
Jump at Handler
Handler:
Graeme Rumbol
Reward:
Liver Cake
More about Tim
Tim is a Sprocker spaniel, that’s 50% working Springer Spaniel and 50% Working Cocker Spaniel. He was born in Berkshire, the youngest of 8 puppies in the litter. Tim was very much the runt of the litter and was tiny when born and not breathing. His human Mum got him breathing and temporarily named him Tiny Tim. He was hand reared and got very used to being handled and carried around. We kept the name Tim but dropped the Tiny bit as he is no longer Tiny, which is challenging as he still thinks he should be cuddled and carried around. Like all spaniels, Tim is energetic, enthusiastic, and always on the go. He loves search training as he gets to run through the woods springing over the undergrowth in search of people and his liver cake reward, which he is obsessed with. His favourite toy is a soft caterpillar toy which carries around everywhere. Tim enjoys running with his dad and chasing sun reflections, an obsession he has developed but will never succeed at. Tim is fast, friendly, energetic, enthusiastic, and very very loving. He passed his fast-track Level 3 qualification at the first attempt in April 2021.
Sponsor Me?:
Not Yet
Joined Team:
August 2018
Born:
February 2014
Discipline:
Air-Scenting
Breed:
Labrador
Level:
L2 – Route and Path
Gender:
Male
Alert:
Bringsel
Handler:
Ro Facer
Reward:
Tennis Ball
More about Otto
Otto is from a family of pedigree working stock Labradors. His black mother and yellow father, uncles and cousins are all used for shooting but Otto was selected at 4 weeks with the specific intent for SAR work. He is handler Ro’s second operational dog. From the start puppy Otto showed fantastic interest in using his nose finding toys and hidden items and while he loves his food he is very motivated by play with the ball. Otto qualified at an early age and quickly progressed through to L3 with an added interest in Cadaver work. Otto is a total rocket when in his search jacket, moving quickly through the search area or woodland. Luckily he also knows where to find the turn off switch. Otto has been described as a “thinking” dog and while fearless he is not reckless. Emotionally, Otto is loving, affectionate and gentle; qualities seen in his sister Helena who has become a working Guide Dog. Being a breed with a “soft mouth” and a desire to carry items Otto’s alert is the bringsel. This is a tag that hangs from the collar which he’ll swing into his mouth and present to his handler on his return from finding the missing person. Otto is the total package. Ro could ask for nothing more, and they really do love working with each other.
