K9 Top Tales

08/10/2023

And another one! Thanks to Dr Carlos Vazquez for having me as a guest on his podcast The Circle of Insight. We talked lots of detection dogs stuff to include the challenges of working detection dogs through complex environments and odor behaviors.

29/09/2023

While I wasn’t hosting my own K9 Top Tales Podcast, Robert Cabral was kind enough to have me as a guest on his!

29/09/2023

New episode drops tomorrow morning!!!
Guess who? This is a sneak peak🔥🇺🇸👮‍♂️

17/09/2023

Enjoyed being a guest on Robert Cabral’s podcast! Thanks for the opportunity Robert Cabral

Sonja Nordstrom was the FBI's first female canine officer in the Los Angels Division, and has some amazing stories to tell. From Bank robberies to human rem...

29/07/2023

Hi all! I am looking forward to speaking and meeting lots of dog folks at the first Smart Dog Conference! Still time to register and attend. Lots of great speakers!

Check Out Our List of Speakers at www.smartdogtraining.net

14/05/2023

https://www.aafs.org/asb-standard/standard-training-and-certification-canine-detection-human-remains-human-remains-land
Hey folks, the latest version of the AAFS/ASB standard re Human Remains Detection is available for comment. This has been rewritten and will set the direction for HRD K9 work moving forward. So very important that we comment thoroughly and respectfully (and within the guidelines of how comments are to be submitted) to be sure this standard is something we can all live with and that it will, in fact, raise the bar, not cripple all of us. Please take the time. It is laborious but so very important.

StandardsASB Standard 076 - RecirculationStandard for Training and Certification of Canine Detection of Human Remains: Human Remains on LandFirst EditionStandardsConsensus Body: Dogs and SensorsOpen for CommentShareShare on TwitterShare on FacebookShare on LinkedIn Dogs and Sensors Deadline: June 26...

14/04/2023

The rest of the story dropped today on Best Case Worst Case! Our dogs are magical but not magic. They are tools that have odor detection capabilities that humans and science have yet to mimic. Thanks again to Francey Hakes and Jim Clemente for the opportunity to share this story.

09/04/2023

Once again, I am a guest on someone else’s podcast. Sincere thanks to Francey Hakes and Jim Clemente for the fun interview opportunity. Check out Best Case Worst Case part 1 of 2 which dropped Friday - “It’s Better to Have a Body!”
I promise, I have a couple of new episodes for K9 Top Tales planned soon🙏😅

06/01/2023

💔 RIP URL!

31/10/2022

New short info episode re Great Basin K-9 SAR

CLICK THIS LINK TO VOTE: VOTE TODAY - VOTE DAILY - PLEASE SHARE: https://www.landroverusa.com/experiences/events-and-sponsorships/defender-service-awards/vote/search-and-rescue.html October 21, 2022 – Today, Great Basin K-9 Search and Rescue was named a finalist among Search and Rescue organizatio...

05/09/2022

My good friend and recent podcast guest Renee throwing out opening pitch today at the Oriole’s game!!! She crushed it!! ⚾️🧢🥳

06/08/2022

New episode re Death Investigation with Ret. Col. Annette R. GrandPre and HRD K9 Indiana Bones. Lots of great info re a day in the life of a Coroner Investigator and her K9 at the Los Angeles County Coroners Office. Lots of info for CSI and Crime junkies too.

06/08/2022

New Episode!!

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 w...

28/04/2022

When your behind on your own podcast, you visit someone else’s 😅 Check out to hear a fun chat with K9 Top Tales host Sonja Nordstrom. Many thanks to and

28/04/2022

I am behind on K9 Top Tales podcasts but was happy to be a guest on Working Dog Radio . Thanks for the hospitality guys!!

12/01/2022

Woo hoo!! Episode Drop🍺
Retired Operator/K9 Handler US Army Special Missions Unit - Fred Fusco!!!

16/12/2021

Check out these podcasts interviews if the ATAK9 team. atak9.com/podblog

12/10/2021

New Episode Drop!!!!

The Making of the US Army Special Operations Command K9 ~ Shannon Krieger, USSOCOM Operator, Handler, and K9 Trainer

This is the second of several interviews highlighting the expert Consultants and Instructors of American Tactical Aggregate K-9.

Please enjoy this episode with SHANNON KRIEGER.

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 Squad Leader. In 1998, he became a member of a Tier One Unit within the US Army. Shortly following 9/11, Shannon was a member of the Assault team when the US launched a Direct-Action retaliatory strike against Al Qaeda and the Taliban. During follow-on operations, Shannon was injured in a helicopter crash that permanently changed his life and career path but which ultimately led him to a primary position to continue to build the CAD program.

As a dog handler, trainer and program manager, Shannon travelled the world in search of the best training and canines for the SOF mission, pulling the best training techniques from KNPV, Schutzhund and Ring Sports and melding them into practical techniques that are combat proven.

https://anchor.fm/k9-top-tales/episodes/The-Making-of-the-US-Army-Special-Operations-Command-K9--Shannon-Krieger--USSOCOM-Operator--Handler--and-K9-Trainer-e18a062

For more information about ATAK-9 cadre of exceptional instructors/consultants, workshops and full courses, follow these links:

Email: [email protected]

>> Website: www.atak9.com

>> ATAK-9 apparel: www.atak-9.myspreadshop.com/all

>> FB: ATAK9

>> IG: www.instagram.com/ata.k9

>> YouTube: ATAK-9

11/10/2021

Who dat??
Another ATAK-9 Instructor Spotlight dropping Tuesday!! Everything (well almost) you ever wanted to know about the development of the Military CAD program! What is “CAD” you ask? Tune in to find out😎

28/09/2021

New episode drop🔥

We can’t get enough of our ATAK-9 “Tao of Zane☯️” with Steve “Zane” Stoops. Follow the link for K9 Top Tales podcast to hear the first of several upcoming ATAK-9 Instructor/Consultant interviews on K9 Top Tales. https://anchor.fm/k9-top-tales/episodes/The-Evolution-of-a-Tactical-Dog-Man---Steve-Zane-Stoops-e1806kg/a-a6jns48

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...

13/07/2021

K9 Top Tales host Sonja was asked to be a guest on “Relentlessly Resilient” a podcast to share and help people overcome the greatest challenges and losses in their lives. In light of the ongoing recovery work at the Surfside Condo collapse, this seemed a timely discussion. Here is the description of the episode: “Former FBI agent Sonja Nordstrom has faced many challenging situations in her 24-year career, and even more as a search and rescue K9 handler. She and her canine companions have traveled the nation from assisting in body recovery at 9/11 ground zero to extensive field experiences in the collection of forensic evidence. Now in retirement, she works as a dog trainer of all ages, breeds, and temperaments. Amid the many heartbreaking and harrowing experiences, over the years she has developed a unique insight into resiliency in the face of disappointment, and shares today on our podcast, tips to cultivate perspective amid the disasters of life.”

10/07/2021

Congratulations to K9 Top Tales friend K9 Brock for landing a role on the new NCIS Hawaii!! They couldn’t have picked a more handsome doggo sidekick🐕🥰 You can hear all about the life of a Studio K9 on K9 Top Tales interview with Sue Chipperton!

04/07/2021

30/06/2021

New episode of K9 Top Tales: 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 FEMA K9 team.
https://anchor.fm/k9-top-tales/episodes/QA-re-FEMA-K9-Teams-and-Surfside-Condo-Collapse-e13ma9g

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 whil...

13/03/2021

The world has lost a great dog man. When I first started this podcast, the first name on my list of people to interview was Neville Sharp, one of the original members of Mountain Rescue Search Dogs of England which just had its 50th Anniversary .
Among the hundreds if not thousands of responses, notable was Neville’s contributions with his dogs re victim recoveries after the PanAm crash in Lockerbie Scotland.
I had the pleasure and honor of training with Neville in 1998 when he came to the US to share his expertise during a seminar. He left a huge impression on me and I have reflected back on and utilized his shared wisdom from that training throughout my K9 career. We stayed in touch intermittently via email through the decades. When I contacted Neville to be a guest on the podcast, he had just been diagnosed with health issues so, we hoped for a day in the future when he was healed up and well. I can only begin to imagine all of the amazing experiences, contributions, and stories he would have shared. Sadly, that day did not come. RIP Neville ~ you were a gift to many and will be dearly missed 💔💔💔

03/02/2021

Such a sad and dark day for the FBI. These two Agents were stellar and fighting the good fight. Heartbroken 💔💔 and devastating for their families and the FBI Family. Wishing their colleagues who were also hit a full recovery.