“Whoever loveth me, loveth my hound” - Thomas More

Deputy Melanie Russell and K9 officer Kahlua from the St. Johns County Sheriff's K9 team were our speakers last week.  They gave the club a small taste of what it's like to be part of this team and how they work together.

Deputy Russell started out with K9's about 12 years ago in Search and Rescue.  Kahlua has been with her for 5 years and is the 3rd blood hound she has had.  She actually has just started training another puppy at home.

The K9's Team is made up of 9 dogs: German Sheppards,  Black Lab, Belgian Malinois, and one Blood Hound (Kahlua).The team not only takes care of St. John's County but has had calls from Clay, Duval, Flagler counties for assistance.  They have assisted with the Haleigh Cummings case, as well as the Somer Thompson case where Kahlua actually the scent to the ultimate suspects house.

Deputy Russell and Kahlua received the 2009 Governor's Tracking Team of the Year Award for their work in finding a lost Eagle Scout that year. The incident occurred on August 11, 2008. A 17-year old male, who was visiting his grandparents, was reported missing in a heavily wooded area behind their home. He had been lost in the woods for nearly six hours before the Sheriff’s Office was contacted.  At 7:00 p.m. Kahlua and Deputy Russell began tracking the juvenile into the woods and continued in knee deep water in the swampy area. At 8:14 p.m., Deputy Russell had fallen during the search and sustained an injury, however, her K-9 marched on through the mud and swamp water; pinpointing the juvenile’s location. It took bulldozers and chainsaws to cut out a track for the deputies and the juvenile to get out to safety.  The juvenile was reunited with his grandparents without any injury. Deputy Russell was transported to Flagler Hospital where she was treated for her injuries and released.

Check out this link for more information: http://xa.yimg.com/kq/groups/17941379/206340287/name/Scan.pdf

 It was a pleasure to host 2 True American Heroes.