Sandi, a male Border Collie born on December 5, 1998, was blessed with a great opportunity as a young dog: to train for the job of his dreams. He was first adopted as a pet from the Orange County Rescue Center by someone from Anaheim, California. It soon became clear that Sandi had too much energy and enthusiasm to be suited for life in a small apartment. So, a Border Collie rescue group was contacted to see if there was a better option for this special dog. They quickly determined that Sandi might be a good fit for a life as a working dog and contacted the National Disaster Search Dog Foundation (SDF) for a test. Sandi passed, no problem, and was soon on his way to becoming a search dog!
The first stop for Sandi: a brief stay in a Prep Home with SDF volunteer Diana Davis for some socialization and obedience training. Then, it was time for six months of formal search dog training at Sundowners Kennels, SDF’s former training kennel in Gilroy, California.
At Sundowners, lead trainer Pluis Davern found that Sandi was one of the easiest dogs she had ever trained. Unlike most Border Collies, Sandi actually had an “on/off” switch. He would drop his calm and sensitive “off-duty” demeanor and become ready, willing, and able to perform training exercises in a New York minute!
Upon graduation, Sandi was partnered with Daniel Solis, a firefighter with the Kern County Fire Department in California, for a very special reason. Dan’s first SDF dog, Gus, had contracted leukemia just after receiving his Advanced Certification from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the highest level recognized in the U.S. To everyone’s dismay, the disease was advancing rapidly. Pluis felt that Sandi’s thoughtful and sensitive demeanor would make him a perfect match for Dan. Shortly before Gus passed away, Dan accepted Sandi and the two were an incredible match.
Though Dan needed to maintain a very structured life for Sandi in order to keep his focus as a skilled search dog, there was always time for fun. At home, Sandi enjoyed playing with his good friend Pepper, a male Lhaso Apso who belongs to Dan’s three young children. Sandi went to work with Dan each shift where he had his own kennel area at the firehouse. Although Sandi was a finicky eater, he loved to hang out with Dan and the other firefighters in the evenings and chew on a bone. He enjoyed playing catch and had a particular fondness for fetching socks. In fact, if the firemen didn’t put their socks away, they were fair game for Sandi. He would snap them right up and proudly bring his new prize to Dan! Everyone at the firehouse knew where to go when they were missing a sock or two…
Dan and Sandi achieved Advanced FEMA Certification in San Jose, CA, on August 18, 2001. Upon earning this distinction, the team was able to deploy wherever disaster might strike. Over the years, their skills were put to use as members of California Task Force 2 (Los Angeles) following several deadly disasters:
Iran Earthquake – December 27, 2003
Hurricane Katrina – September 1, 2005
Rosedale Roof Collapse – April 29, 2008
Chatsworth Train Collision – September 12, 2008
Highway 58 Vehicle Rollover – April 19, 2009
When not on deployment, Sandi and Dan loved to visit schools to educate children about the life of a Search Dog Team. The children would hide as part of a mock search, waiting for Sandi to find and “rescue” them. But Sandi loved the kids so much—and vice-versa—it didn’t feel like work to him at all! Sandi also participated in public education exhibitions, where he got to ride on the fire truck with Dan, a ladder engineer.
When his FEMA Certification ran out in October of 2009, at the age of eleven, Sandi retired from the task force and continued to enjoy life at the Solis household as a valued member of the family, only now as a “pet”. He spent several more years living a happy life with his loving family in Bakersfield.
On December 23, 2013, when old age had compromised Sandi’s quality of life, Dan said goodbye to his partner of 13 years. The canine hero was laid to rest, blanketed by the American flag.