From Kill Shelter to Specialty K9

By Hannah Stampleman

Two months ago alum Blanco came to Montclair Township Animal Shelter. Plucked from a Paterson kill shelter, Blanco's eyes told a story of having more to give than his current situation allowed. "I always need to see their eyes... it's kind of an old school initial evaluation. You can get the feel for how invested they are to be with humans" says shelter director Liz Morgan. "I'm so proud of Blanco! We got a call from [Specialty K9 Search and Recovery] looking for a 'working GSD' asked them to come meet him." Blanco, now Sparky, is in training for his new life and this time he's the one doing the saving! Sparky, pictured with owner and handler Robert Langendoen, started out strong on his first day of training getting to know the team and learning fun training games. While this is a very happy ending for the shelter's time with Sparky, it's only the beginning of his incredible new journey! Congratulations, Sparky and Robert! 

SK9SAR is a non-profit 501c3 organization dedicated to providing professionally trained and certified K9/Handler resources for search, rescue and recovery, at no cost. They respond only at the authority of law enforcement or affiliate agency. For more information on their mission and accomplishments, visit their website at http://specialtyk9sar.org