CHESAPEAKE, Va. — The Chesapeake Fire Department has a new way to help save lives in Virginia and across the country.
The fire department's first-ever search and rescue dogs have just been put into service.
Their names are Pluto and Chirp, and they are the result of a couple of years of planning and preparation.
The dogs and their two handlers, Chesapeake Fire Department Lt. Jeremy DeMott for Chirp and Chesapeake Fire Department Firefighter and Paramedic Brandy Outlaw for Pluto, recently earned their FEMA/Urban Search and Rescue certification which will allow them to be deployed with Virginia Task Force Two.
Task Force Two is an eight-member urban search and rescue team based in Virginia that is part of the National Urban Search and Rescue System and can be deployed to respond to disasters across the country.
“For me, it was more about the love for animals, especially dogs. I found the desire to seek out events where I could get a dog and work it with my new position in the fire department," DeMott said.
“It’s been a life-changing experience having Pluto in my life. From our home experience to our work experience, it’s been amazing," said Outlaw. "The things this dog can do, the things you can teach a dog to do in general, it's been very eye opening for me. It's changed the way our home dogs behave and the way we have discipline and structure in our house."
The goal is to have the dogs work for about nine years before having to be retired.
You can follow the dogs on Instagram at @k9chirp and @k9plutovatf2.
