Cheyenne, Dakota and Tahoe
Search-and-Rescuers Cheyenne, Tahoe and Dakota
"9/11 is a day that no American will ever forget. Although I and my team-mates live in Sacramento, California, we were able to get on the scene at the World Trade Center to help search for survivors. That was a tough situation; even though we have participated in over 200 search missions, every mission has its own challenges. My team also worked the Space Shuttle Columbia disaster, and assisted in the search for Laci Peterson.
We are multi-faceted though; when disasters do not call for our services, we take joy in working with special needs children. Some of the children we see are mentally and/or physically challenged. Others are victims of abuse. We do it because we love the work, and because it suits our temperaments. It takes a special kind of courage and demeanor to earn the trust of children, especially those who have lived a life of distrust because of having been battered and abused. We also teach safety programs at schools and to children's groups.
As a result of our work, we've earned a number of awards and recognitions; to name a few:
Presidential Volunteer Lifetime of Service Award from President Barack Obama
Jefferson Award - Nobel Prize for Public Service
American Red Cross Real Hero Award
Certificate of Appreciation from the FBI
NSAL Heroism Award
Despite our work, and these awards and recognitions, most Americans would never recognize us if we were to meet on the street. Our names are Cheyenne, Dakota, and Tahoe. You don't recognize us? That's sad, but not unexpected. As is often the case, the news media tends to portray the worst of society, not the best. You see, the three of us on the team are all of one type - Pit Bull.
It is difficult to understand this, but there are places we can't safely go to help our fellow Americans. We worked tirelessly for many hours in the 9/11 aftermath, but if we were to step foot in Denver or any of the other cities that have passed breed specific laws, we would be taken away from our leader and executed.
Please fight for appropriate dog laws for everyone. Dog laws need to be equal, regardless of breed, and should be fair. Laws that target dogs by breed are discriminatory and dangerous. Just ask the thousands of Pit Bulls who've been summarily killed, rather than given a chance to do the work we do."
