K9 Search Team

The Sedgwick County Emergency Management K9 Search and Rescue Team is a public safety team that provides air scent, trailing/tracking, and human remains detection services. The team currently maintains 10 certified working dogs and another 5 dogs progressing towards certifications. K9 Team volunteers serve at the pleasure of Emergency Management and must adhere to strict qualifications and follow guidelines to remain a team member. At minimum, initial applicants must possess a NASAR SARTECH certification as well as ICS 100, 700, Possession of valid qualifications DOES NOT guarantee automatic admission to the team. 

Once qualifications have been vetted by Emergency Management, applicants will be scheduled for an in-person interview with members of Emergency Management and K9 Team Leadership. An evaluation of your K9 will occur during the interview. Upon successfully passing the interview stage, applicants are required to submit to an extensive 7-year background check. After successfully completing a background check, The handler will be placed on probationary status with the team for up to one year. During this time the probationary team member must display proper handling skills, ethics, and teamwork. To move from probation to "deployable" full team member status, the handler must pass the Emergency Management required K9 handler functional test. Probation team members are not deployable until approved by Emergency Management. 

The primary function of Emergency Management's K9 Search Team is to search for missing or deceased persons who are victims of natural or manmade disasters. The team serves a vital role during large-scale disaster situations. Because disasters don’t occur frequently, the team spends it’s time training twice per week on Thursday evenings and Saturday mornings. They also assist local law enforcement with searching for lost or missing adults and children, as well as helping to locate victims of crimes, including cold cases that are decades old. Due to the team’s interaction with local law enforcement agencies, K9 team members are heavily vetted by Emergency Management and receive specialized training in evidence handling and on scene emergency communication.