Podcast · Society & Culture

K9 Top Tales

by Sonja Nordstrom · English · Society & Culture

Working K9 case reviews ~ real-life stories of K9 warriors, crime fighters, protectors, and rescuers as told by their Law Enforcement, Military, and Search & Rescue Handlers and Partners. Your host is Sonja Nordstrom, a retired FBI Special Agent and a Handler and Trainer of Search & Rescue/Recovery

New episodes: Monthly
Typical length: 1 hr 1 min
Latest: 4 Jun 2026
Language: English

Latest episode

4 Jun 2026 · 1 hr 1 min

From Military to Sport - All Things Detection with Bill Gaskins

Please enjoy this episode with Bill Gaskins of Integrity Noseworx: Bill served in the US Air Force as a Law Enforcement Specialist Military Working Dog Handler of 10 different dogs, Trainer for over 50 operational K9 Teams, and Kennel Master managing kennel operations all over the world. As a canine training instructor, he trained and certified 624 operational Canine Teams for deployment to Iraq and Afghanistan in tasks from Obedience, Patrol Protection, as well as Explosive and Narcotics detection. Today, he is a sport Scent Work Judge for all levels of AKC Scent Work and an NACSW Judge and…

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Earlier episodes 20 most recent

E18 · 14 May 2026 · 56 min
USMC EOD K9s Guide the Way with Dustin Stiles
Dustin Stiles is a US Marine Corp Veteran and one of the first 9 soldiers to handle an Explosive Detection Dog as part of the U.S. Marine Corp off-leash EOD K9 program, also known as a Patrol Explosive Detection Dog Enhanced team. At the time, this was a new program which was designed to allow dogs to operate 50-100+ meters ahead of infantry or EOD teams, significantly increasing safety by identifying IEDs at a distance.
E17 · 23 Apr 2026 · 1 hr 32 min
Breaking New Ground in K9 Detection with Paul Bunker
Paul Bunker has decades of K9 detection experience, having worked all over the world and across many disciplines as a handler, instructor, innovator, and author. Starting more than 40 years ago training narcotics, explosives, and mine detection K9s for the military in both the UK and United States, Paul now predominantly focuses on K9 detection work for conservation, conducting endangered species management and reintegration surveys to oil leak detection. He is the author of two K9 detection books (Imprint Your Detection Dog in 15 Days and The Detection of Buried Targets by Canines) and has…
E16 · 2 Apr 2026 · 30 min
Lifeflight to the Rescue with Darby Earle, RN
Sometimes even a hero needs a hero - that’s where Intermountain Lifeflight steps in by providing emergency care and helicopter transport for injured operational ”first responder” K9s.
E15 · 29 Sep 2023 · 1 hr 36 min
The Legend ~ 50 years of K9 Capers with Andy Rebmann
In this episode, Retired CT State Trooper Andy Rebmann, author of the Cadaver Dog Handbook, shares lots of great training information and fantastic K9 capers with his Patrol K9s, Trailing Bloodhounds, and Cadaver Dogs. Hard to even scratch the surface of someone with 50 years experience but it was a super fun conversation with a legend in the industry. Thanks for the chat Andy! Andy's bio: Andy has been involved in search work and K-9 training since 1972. He is a retired trainer for Connecticut State Police. During his police career, he trained K-9 teams for patrol, tracking,…
6 Aug 2022 · 52 min
Death Investigation and the Human Remains Detection K9 with Col. Annette R. GrandPre (ret.)
Renee (Retired Col. Annette Renee GrandPre) has lived a life of service from start to finish. With military deployments to Kosovo in 2006 and to Kandahar in 2018, she rounded out her military career as a full bird Colonel with too many awards and decorations to enumerate, culminating most recently with the Legion of Merit award. Her civilian work as an ER, Trauma, ICU and Psychiatric care nurse in Los Angeles lead her on a path to pursuing work as a Coroner Investigator for the County of Los Angeles. Among her accomplishments while at the Coroner's Office was starting a Human…
S2 · E14 · 12 Jan 2022 · 42 min
Making the Grade as a US Army Special Mission Unit K9 with Fred Fusco
Fred "Big Fred" Fusco of Storm Tactical Consulting  Website: <a href="https://wwwstormtactical.wixsite.com/stormtactical ">stormtactical.wixsite.com/stormtactical </a>  IG: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/storm_tactical_consulting/">www.instagram.com/storm_tactical_consulting/</a> YouTube: <a href="http://www.youtube.com/channel/UC0KNW8fzQrOZgCSxQXHoHzA">www.youtube.com/channel/UC0KNW8fzQrOZgCSxQXHoHzA</a> In this episode, Fred shares his training and deployment mission experiences and what it takes for a dog to make the grade in Special…
S2 · E13 · 12 Oct 2021 · 57 min
The Making of the US Army Special Operations Command K9 ~ Shannon Krieger, USSOCOM Operator, Handler, and K9 Trainer
Please enjoy this episode with SHANNON KRIEGER, a person who has served the United States with dedication, sacrifice, and honor.  From 1999 - 2012, Shannon Krieger was a working K9 handler and trainer for Special Operations Forces (SOF) and a K9 program that would become one of the best practical military initiatives in the last century.  That initiative was the Combat Assault Dog (CAD) program in USSOCOM. In 1993, Shannon started at the 1st Battalion 75th Ranger Regiment where he became a Rifle…
S2 · E12 · 4 Oct 2021 · 57 min
The Evolution of a Tactical ”Dog Man” - Steve ”Zane” Stoops
ATAK-9 Instructor/Trainer Spotlight #1 - Steve "Zane" Stoops: Welcome Steve of American Tactical Aggregate K-9 (ATAK-9) to K9 Top Tales. Steve has evolved through 3+ decades to become the dog man of dog men. He has vast field experience as a police K9 officer serving 20 years, international contract K9 Handler and Program Manager, and since 2004, a lead trainer for the Special Operations community with duty tours worldwide.  ATAK-9 has a cadre of exceptional K9 and tactical instructors/consultants and offers workshops and full courses.  Follow these links to…
S1 · E11 · 30 Jun 2021 · 1 hr 5 min
Q&A re FEMA K9 Teams and the Surfside Condo Collapse
In light of the recent and very tragic Condominium Collapse disaster in Surfside, Florida, I called on a long-time Search and Rescue K9 colleague and friend, Deresa Kenney (Teller,) who is a one of the original FEMA Disaster K9 Handlers. In this episode, Deresa not only tells of her experiences while working large scale disasters such as the Oklahoma City Bombing, 9/11 World Trade Center, Hurricane Katrina, and other disaster sites, but also shares her knowledge and insights regarding the work of FEMA Disaster Response K9 teams and the requirements to become a Certified and Deployable…
S2 · E1 · 21 Jan 2021 · 35 min
Paving the Way for Female K9 Officers with Rose Cox
Rose (Rosalie) Cox is a one of a small number of women who paved the way for female handlers in the Patrol and Detection K9 world.  She is one of the hardest working folks in the industry and has walked the walk starting back in 1987 as a Handler for the Utah Department of Corrections.  In 1990, she joined the Salt Lake City Police Department as a Patrol Officer and quickly became a K9 and SWAT Trained Officer. After years working two dual-purpose Narcotics / Patrol K9s, Rose partnered with a single-purpose Explosive Detection K9 that she trained and worked during…
S1 · E9 · 3 Nov 2020 · 1 hr 4 min
K9 Rescues on the Southern Border with USBP BORSTAR Agent Roy Lopez (retired)
Roy Lopez has a very impressive and long history of service, starting out as a Navy Seal, a Veteran of Desert Shield and Desert Storm, then joining the Border Patrol in 1997 where he became one of the founding members of both the US Border Patrol’s BORSTAR team and the BORSTAR K9 Program.  While working his dogs Malcolm and Alex in tracking and cadaver and amassing nearly 2000 rescues/recoveries, Roy developed a full HRD course for the Border Patrol, the Federal Government’s only complete HRD course. Graduates of the 400 hour course include Border Patrol Agents, State and…
S1 · E8 · 1 Nov 2020 · 1 hr 11 min
International Disaster Search K9 Deployments with Sonja Heritage
Well, this is episode #8 (not #7 - apparently I've lost track)! So many experiences shared in this episode. Sonja Heritage is likely one of the most experienced FEMA Disaster Response Search and Rescue Dog Handlers and trainers in the United States. As a former member of the FEMA Virginia TF1 and State Department Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance USAID, she has traveled the world for more than two decades with her Disaster SAR K9s, responding to earthquakes, bombings, hurricanes, and mudslides in Turkey, Nairobi, Haiti, Taiwan, and throughout the United States. Currently…
S1 · E7 · 18 Aug 2020 · 1 hr 6 min
Tracking Monsters with Hounds - Coby Webb, PhD (Riverside Sheriff’s Department - Captain Retired)
Coby Webb, PhD, is a nationally known Police Captain (recently retired) for a Department of more than 4000 sworn and an accomplished Handler of dual-purpose patrol/narcotics K9s and Bloodhounds. She is best known and most highly regarded for her work handling, training, judging and evaluating bloodhounds and is a recognized court expert in scent discrimination. She has consulted on hundreds of high-profile cases regarding tracking evidence. In addition to being a Captain, she obtained her PhD, raised twins (who are both talented dog trainers and handlers in their own right,) and has…
S1 · E6 · 4 Aug 2020 · 1 hr 3 min
Great K9 Capers with Sgt. MIKE GOOSBY, Chief Trainer LAPD K9 Metro!
LAPD Sgt. Mike Goosby - With more than 750 criminal apprehensions walking behind a K9, Mike Goosby is one of the nation's authorities regarding tactical K9 deployment. In this episode, Mike shares some fun stories about his K9s Thunder and Luca and some great gems re deployment, living with a police K9, and LAPD K9 command and control. A couple of Goosby originals: "You can't expect your K9 team to have Porsche performance when you only offer them minivan maintenance." "They are police dogs, not debutantes."  <ul> <li>07:50 - K9 Thunder</li> <li>25:00 - K9…
S1 · E5 · 7 Jul 2020 · 40 min
Gunny the Search and Rescue/Recovery K9 - with Handler Joe Jennings
Sometimes the unsung heroes of the working K9 Community are the Search dogs that locate those who have passed before they could be rescued. This episode highlights my Great Basin K-9 SAR teammates, Joe Jennings and his Golden Retriever Gunny <a href="https://greatbasink-9sar.org/">https://greatbasink-9sar.org/</a> Gunny was certified as a live find wilderness K9, an Avalanche Dog, but also as a dog that would hunt for and locate human remains both on land and in water. One very difficult search was for a young 21-year-old woman, Annie Schmidt, lost in the Columbia River Gorge area in…
S1 · E4 · 23 Jun 2020 · 1 hr 1 min
K9 TV Heroes with Sue Chipperton
When watching animals working on TV, did you ever ask yourself, "How did they get the dog to do that?" Well, my guest Sue Chipperton has decades of Studio Animal work and knows all the tricks of the trade. She will share with us the story of Eddie, the Labrador Retriever that performs all sorts of heroic deeds while cast on Hawaii 5-0, some history regarding her work with Gidget the Taco Bell Dog, and also her work with the puppies in the iconic Budweiser Superbowl commercials. Sue is the Author of "A Famous Dog's Life" and owner of a movie animal company on Oahu Hawaii, <a…
S1 · E1 · 9 Jun 2020 · 46 min
Anti-Poaching Dogs of Africa with Trainer Linda Porter
Linda Porter of the Canine Training Academy in Cañon City, Colorado, tells of hers and her husband John Lutenberg's unique experiences training tracking bloodhounds and Ivory and Weapons Detection K9s for the Rangers of the Mara Conservancy in Kenya, Africa, to combat poaching. Linda and John offer tracking/trailing K9 training of the highest quality at their facility - <a href="https://www.caninetrainingacademy.com/">https://www.caninetrainingacademy.com/</a> You can learn more about the Mara Triangle and the work of Linda and John via these links: <a…
S1 · E3 · 9 Jun 2020 · 1 hr 8 min
K9 Search and Rescue - The Early Days with Bill Dotson
Bill Dotson is well known throughout the Search and Rescue (SAR) community as a Search Manager and Trainer/Instructor. In this episode, however, we'll chat with Bill about his early days in SAR with his Belgian Shepherd Lys, traveling for testing to Switzerland, and forming CARDA (California Rescue Dog Association.) With deployments close to home in Northern California and also throughout the world responding to disasters, Bill shares his stories of searches with his dogs, the relationships he had with his dogs, and a wealth of knowledge gleaned during 42 years involved in K9…
S1 · E2 · 28 May 2020 · 1 hr 27 min
Working the Patrol/Sheriff’s/SWAT K9 with KEVIN SHELDAHL
In this episode, Kevin Sheldahl shares his decades of experience as a K9 Handler and Trainer for the Bernalillo County Sheriff's Department in New Mexico and now as owner and trainer for K-9 Services (www.k-9services.com).  During the episode, Kevin uses some terms which may not be familiar to some listeners so the definitions are provided:  DM - Degenerative Myelopathy/disc disease | FTO - Field Training Officer | Clever Hans - the horse that could do math or could he? <a…
S1 · 5 May 2020 · 3 min
Welcome to K9 Top Tales!
Welcome to the K9 Top Tales podcast where you will hear exciting, interesting, and at times heart-wrenching stories of these K9 warriors, protectors, rescuers, and crime fighters directly from their K9 handlers and partners. This Podcast trailer includes an introduction to your host, retired FBI Special Agent and K9 Handler/Trainer of 25 years, Sonja Nordstrom. You can learn more about Sonja and her K9 training and protection K9 sales services at the following websites: Heimdallr K9 Services: Providing trained dogs of the highest…

About K9 Top Tales

K9 Top Tales is a English society & culture podcast from Sonja Nordstrom. Melo plays each episode straight from the publisher's own feed — no ads added, no account needed — and remembers where you stopped, in this browser only.

Publisher: Sonja Nordstrom
Language: English
Category: Society & Culture
New episodes: Monthly
Typical length: 1 hr 1 min
Latest episode: 4 Jun 2026
Feed: RSS — paste into any podcast app
Apple Podcasts: podcasts.apple.com/podcast/id1511657018
Rights: Sonja Nordstrom

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