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Manteno Search Dog Remembered, Tucker now Carries Out Missions
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Tracy Ahrens
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Neighbors
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10.23.08
Sitting in the grass, under the shade of a tree, Lorraine Spaeth smiled as she spoke of her work partner and pet, Kelsey.
Last month, the German Shepherd's ashes were spread here on the grounds around Manteno Fire Department Station 2, located at 501 E. Redwood Ave. Kelsey's ashes join those of another search and rescue dog, Little, who passed two years before her.
On Sept. 8, Kelsey, 13, was euthanized. At 8 or 9, a lump was found on one of her hips. Diagnosed as nerve sheath blastoma (cancer), the mass was removed and the cancer never returned. Four years later, however, Kelsey began having seizures for unknown reasons. They took a toll on her quality of life.
Crated nearby in Lorraine's SUV, were her current German Shepherd partners, Tucker, 2, and Macy, 6 months. They waited patiently to run the grounds, training with their master for future search and rescue missions.
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"Kelsey was the first dog I trained on my own to do search and rescue missions," Lorraine said. Lorraine was a firefighter/paramedic with the Manteno Fire Department for 20 years. Now she is an emergency room technician and instructor for North American Search Dog Network. "Kelsey went out in the field the first time to work at the age of 13 months," she said.
Most of Kelsey's search missions she did solo, Lorraine said, explaining that Kelsey would search an area by herself, not as a team with other search dogs. Lorraine and Kelsey worked with police and fire personnel whenever they were called, taking on missing persons cases in Ohio, Indiana, Wisconsin and Illinois.
When a person is lost or missing, a search and rescue dog's keen sense of smell, coupled with skilled trainers, increases the chances of a person being found quickly, possibly increasing the speed of their rescue or recovery.
"Families are thankful; they are comforted by the presence of a search dog, whether that dog helps find someone's relative or not," Lorraine said. "We are there, with our dogs, to help families and professionals."
Kelsey's impressive record included locating three people who were still alive, and finding the remains of 10 bodies in Joliet, Coal City, Plainfield, Indiana and Morris.
"A few of those bodies were fresh," Lorraine said, meaning the person had died within a matter of hours. In Grant Park, Kelsey found someone who had been dead just 12 hours. In St. Anne, she located a man who died in a creek.
Kelsey and Lorraine were also called on by New York City officials in the aftermath of terrorist attacks on Sept. 11. Lorraine couldn't go, however, because she was recovering from knee surgery.
During her career as a search dog, Kelsey was kept out of the media spotlight. Sometimes media members would ask Lorraine what Kelsey had found, but Lorraine could not discuss it.
"When my dogs do their job, after they are done, I load them up into my vehicle and take them somewhere else to praise them," Lorraine said. "I do this out of respect for the family members present. It is a somber time, searching for someone. I do not praise my dogs in front of them."
Kelsey searched solo with Lorraine for most of her career. The last three years, she worked with Kankakee Valley Search & Rescue, a canine/trainer team that Lorraine helped organize in 2004 through the Kankakee County Sheriff's Department. Lorraine retired Kelsey in December of 2007.
While Little has a granite memorial marker near the fire station front door, Lorraine said the fire department may place a memorial marker for Kelsey by a tree on the grounds.
Rod Wolfe with Wolfe Whispering Winds pet crematory in Chebanse, was with Lorraine at Beecher Veterinary Clinic when Kelsey was euthanized. He took the dog's body that day to his facility and cremated her, all a donation for the service she provided to the public.
"When you have a dog, whether it is a work partner or a pet, you care about that animal," Lorraine said. "We (trainers of search and rescue dogs) are probably a little more careful to protect our dogs and we probably spend more time with our dogs, traveling and working. However, when we lose a dog, it's no different than others who lose a pet. We all grieve. Kelsey was a good partner."
People typically saw Kelsey intensely working, but she also had a unique personality.
Unlike Little, also a German Shepherd and the first Manteno Fire search and rescue dog that was donated to the team, Kelsey was purchased at 3 or 4 months of age by Lorraine from a Monee breeder.
Kelsey, originally named The Kaiser's Miss Kelsey Storm by her breeder, affectionately received the nickname of "Turd" from Lorraine.
At home, the 80-pound "lap dog" loved popcorn and playing with a floating, blue-colored Kong toy. As far as a favorite food was concerned, Lorraine said, "Anything Kelsey could eat, she loved."
In fact, at one point, Lorraine trained Kelsey to open her refrigerator and retrieve cans of Diet Coke. Lorraine did this while she was recovering from a broken leg, a break her dog Tucker caused by knocking her down a flight of stairs during a training mission.
"One day while I was gone, Kelsey opened the fridge and ate a 3-pound ham, one dozen eggs, 2 pounds of butter, one box of Bisquick and packages of Fig Newtons," Lorraine said. Kelsey was okay after taking Gas-X, but following that incident, Lorraine put a lock on her refrigerator door.
Routinely, Lorraine trained Kelsey for search and rescue missions, hiding scent objects around either Manteno Fire Station 2 or other outdoor locations. "She knew commands very well," Lorraine said. "Sometimes she acted like she didn't hear me when I gave those commands, but she knew them well."
While Kelsey searched, her tail was "level with her back," Lorraine said, "but as she got close to a body, her tail would start wagging with excitement."
Every night, Kelsey slept in the doorway leading to Lorraine's bedroom.
While German Shepherds have a reputation for being protective and able to attack on command, Kelsey was trained to search for missing persons, not attack.
"She wouldn't attack anyone," Lorraine said with a laugh. "She would stop and bark at them first. Then she'd lick them to death."
Rather than have a dog as a playmate, Kelsey preferred kittens, Lorraine said. If she found a kitten, she said, "Kelsey would clean and love them. She would rather have a kitten than a dog close to her."
She also was afraid of water, Lorraine said. Just like Kelsey, Tucker doesn't like getting his feet wet, either.
Today, Tucker admirably follows in the paw prints of his mentor, Kelsey.
Tucker, short for Tucker's Thunder, was purchased as a puppy by Lorraine from a breeder in Ohio. He, too, received an affectionate nickname from Lorraine - "Butthead."
Tucker now sleeps in the hallway outside of Lorraine's bedroom and he, like Kelsey, likes to eat everything.
At a muscular 80 pounds and sporting a long body and graceful stride, Tucker has worked several cases and made one "find" of a deceased person. That was a man's body found in a creek in Frankfort.
Macy, given to Lorraine by K-9 Guardians Boarding & Training in Lockport, is still in the early stages of training. "She's a little slow to respond," Lorraine said, "and I'm having trouble getting her to focus."
Training usually starts at 8 weeks of age, Lorraine said. Trainers seek to certify their search and rescue dogs by 18 months of age through a special testing process. Owners then continue training the dogs throughout their lives.
Being a search dog owner can be expensive (including work equipment, veterinary bills from injuries sustained on the job, and travel expenses), time consuming and trainers need to stay physically fit to search with their dog. All of the work is on a volunteer basis.
"Sometimes you can search for 8 to 12 hours at a time," Lorraine said. Calls for a search dog can come at any time of the day or night.
Search and rescue dogs can be any breed or age, although it is good to start training a dog when it is young.
Habitually, Lorraine trains her dogs outside of Manteno Fire Department Station 2, hiding scent objects in the bushes, on the lawn or in the crotch of trees.
These objects are often Mason jars filled with grass and weeds taken from under decomposing bodies while on search missions. Lorraine simply opens the jar lids slightly and dogs pick up the scent.
With all of her search and rescue dogs, Lorraine uses the command "Go find Fred" when they enter a field to search. "I heard it while I was in training classes and it stuck with me," she said.
Tucker immediately starts searching, sniffing the air and ground and standing with his tail wagging, "alerting" Lorraine with a bark when he finds a jar. Lorraine praises him with a pat on the head and casual play with a rubber ball.
Today, six dogs are on the Kankakee Valley Search & Rescue team. Three others are in training. All dog owners are called for each mission, and as many as possible come. The more noses searching a site, the faster a recovery is possible, Lorraine said.
"I want people to know that there is a team of search dogs like Kelsey out there," Lorraine said. "Money for training our dogs and caring for them comes out of our pockets as volunteers. We are always happy to help search for someone."
More search dogs are always sought, and people interested can contact Lorraine at 815-468-8373 for information.
While dogs enjoy searching, sometimes even riding in boats across water, owners love the interaction and bond they share while working.
"I enjoy this work," Lorraine said. "It is exciting when a dog hits a scent trail and follows it."
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