Mikella is a member of the Mountain Wind Sheriff's Search Dog unit and also gives search dog presentations to schools and other organizations in Montana and the surround states. She works as a freelance artist, illustrating several children's books and animations. Freelancing allows for a flexible schedule, so Mikella can volunteer as a wilderness search dog handler.
Mikella: “My stepfather was a professional mantracker, tracking criminals for law enforcement agencies in the north western states. As children, both my brother Albert and I learned tracking and survival skills at an early age. Albert even followed in my father's footsteps for a few years. Better suited for search and rescue (SAR), I joined a volunteer search dog unit operated by the Mountain Wind Sheriff's Department.
Already qualified for back country survival and orientation, I focussed my efforts on dog handling. Around the same time, we found a pup with great promise. A little terror who was incredibly tenacious at finding things she wasn't supposed to chew.”
Often searching remote areas, Mikella assists Fish and Wildlife with various wildlife research. She reports wildlife observed on searches and assists with remote tag monitoring studies. In her spare time, Mikella participates in the spring and fall eagle migration count for golden and bald eagles. The migration corridor extends through Alberta and Montana, with volunteers spotting up to 2000 eagles per season.
Mikella and Ebbey volunteer for the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) and support their efforts to Stop Puppy Mills stoppuppymills.com. Mikella designed and donated their latest stoppuppymills.com t-shirt artwork.
Working with the National Association for Search And Rescue (NASAR), Search Dog Expert Marion Hardy was a huge inspiration to my becoming a search dog handler. I had an opportunity to speak with her early in my career and she made a big impression. She has extensive experience as a search dog handler and may be best known for her studies on water searches with dogs.
Kimberly Kelly Falconer, the founder and director of Project Far From Home, is a tremendous resource. Her foundation runs a national search management program designed to educate law enforcement and SAR teams about wandering Alzheimer's patients. She has extensive SAR experience including underwater searches and human remains detection with her own search dog.
Photo Album with Search Dog Facts >