Brutus, a male German Shepherd was born on June 21, 2002 in Gilroy, CA. Donated by breeder Deleta Jones, Brutus comes from a long line of large, strong canines with intense energy and drive. His father was a national competition-level German Shepherd named Honda; and his littermate, Kona, was also a Search Dog Foundation Search Dog, now enjoying retirement in a Lifetime Care home in Ojai, CA. Deleta saw early on that Brutus had the same kind strength and passion that SDF finds engaging as a Search Dog.
With this understanding, Deleta donated Brutus to SDF as a puppy. Once officially accepted into our program, he was taken to live in one of our Canine Prep Home families in Ojai. Becky Beckett, Steve North, their two daughters, and their Border Collie, Ketch (a Lifetime Care dog), helped Brutus adjust to the family setting and taught him basic obedience skills.
Brutus was part of weekly training sessions in Ojai throughout his puppyhood. Living with Becky and Steve, he became acclimated to the SDF Canine Prep Home program. “He is a sweet dog and gentle with children, but is also a real ball of fire!” says Becky. She reports that he powers through his tasks with tremendous energy and single-mindedness, as well as excelling at the “bark alert.” Becky and Steve have also found that he has a very high “toy drive,” meaning he will go to extraordinary lengths to find his toy. This is very important, since SDF dogs are rewarded with a toy after a task well accomplished.
In the Spring of 2004, Brutus finished his training program at Sundowners in just six months. He was paired with Lee Culley, a civilian SDF handler from Littlerock, CA. Brutus and Lee trained hard with SDF’s Ventura/Santa Barbara Training Group, and in June of 2005 achieved FEMA certification as a Canine Disaster Search Team.
In the Fall of 2008, Lee and Brutus made the decision to move to Salt Lake City, Utah, so Lee could continue her studies in nursing. When they arrived, Lee immediately contacted the FEMA task force in Utah so she and Brutus could keep their status as a deployable Search Team.
Lee and Brutus quickly settled into their new surroundings and began training with the other Utah Task Force 1 Canine Disaster Search Teams. In Summer of 2008, Lee and Brutus were deployed for the first time since their move to search for a missing hiker in Neff’s Canyon, just outside of Salt Lake City. Although they did not find the man, Lee shared that it was a great feeling to be back in the swing of things and searching again.
In October of 2009 and again in October of 2012, Lee and Brutus Re-Certified as a FEMA Canine Disaster Search Team, allowing them to deploy to disasters anywhere in the United States.
At the age of 12, upon a recommendation from Brutus’ vet, Lee agreed it was officially time to retire him. The two had a long, happy career together but his age was starting to show and he had slowed on the rubble pile. Brutus continued to live his retirement years with Lee at their home in Salt Lake City.
Sadly, at the age of 15, Brutus crossed Rainbow Bridge. We thank Lee and Brutus for their hard work and dedication to Search and Rescue work over the years.