Georgian Bay Volunteer Search and Rescue is one of the few OSARVA teams to have an OPP/OSARVA certified civilian search and rescue dog. Although these K9 Units are affiliated with a specific OSARVA team, such as GBVSAR, they are considered a provincial resource to be requested by any search team in Ontario. These certified units could be requested by the OPP to help out anywhere in the province.
K9 Unit
Handler Susan Read
Susan has been a member of GBVSAR since 2001. She started as a ground searcher before forming our team’s K9 Unit. Susan is also the Provincial K9 Coordinator for OSARVA. If you have any questions about K9 Search and Rescue in the province of Ontario, she can be contacted at susan@osarva.ca.
K9 Zena
Zena is the newest member of GBVSAR’s K9 Unit. She certified for the first time with the OPP in the fall of 2019 as a Live Find dog. She is a Belgian Malinois that was born on February 4, 2017 in Utah.
K9 Zappa
Zappa is a NAPWDA (North American Police Work Dog Association) certified Human Remains Detection dog. He first certified in 2015. Zappa and Susan travel to Massachusetts each year for re-certification. He is a Belgian Malinois that was born on December 21, 2013 in California.
K9 Zori
Zori was first certified by the OPP in 2008, and remained so until 2019 when she retired. Zori is a Belgian Malinois that was born on October 17, 2006 in Florida.