Trainers
Training K9's for a Brighter Future
Brad Smith
Officer Brad Smith started his law enforcement career in 1999 as a sheriff’s deputy with the Stillwater County Sheriff’s Office in Montana. In 2003, Smith went through basic dual-purpose handler school at Crazy Mountain Kennels in Big Timber, MT with K9 Cyrus (German Shepherd). In 2005, Smith lateralled to the Duvall Police Department, WA where he started their K9 Program while still partnered with K9 Cyrus. They began attending and certifying annually through PNWK9 in 2006. K9 Cyrus passed away in 2009. Smith lateralled to the Marysville Police Department, WA in 2009 where he was partnered with narcotic detection K9 Katy (Black Labrador Retriever) in 2011. Smith and K9 Katy spent several years on the PRO-ACT Team before retiring K9 Katy in 2016. Smith was then partnered with dual-purpose K9 Steele (Belgian Malinois) in 2016. Smith imprinted/trained K9 Steele and K9 Copper of the Marysville Police Department in narcotic detection. Smith is currently the department narcotic detection dog trainer and assigned to the K9 Unit. Smith became a certifying official for the Criminal Justice Training Commission and PNWK9 in 2018.
Gunner Fulmer | Walla Walla Police Department – Retired
I started my career in Law Enforcement for the city of Walla Walla in 2008, after serving 13 years as a Paramedic/Firefighter for the same city. I was awarded my first canine partner in 2009, K9 Rev. I worked K9 Rev as a narcotics canine on patrol, serving 6 different cities, FBI, DEA and Washington State Penitentiary. In 2015, I retired K9 Rev and received K9 Pick. In 2015, I was assigned to a special teams unit, assisting departments in and around Walla Walla, FBI, DEA, Washington State Penitentiary and other task forces in our region.
In 2018 I was promoted to patrol sergeant but continued to work my dog until the beginning of 2020. K9 Pick was retired in February of 2020. In February of 2020, I was promoted to administrative sergeant within my department. I retired from the department in December of 2022. I now serve as an elected Walla Walla County Commissioner for District 3.
I have been part of PNWK9 since 2009, I helped establish the regional training group in South Eastern Washington and North Eastern Oregon. I have helped instruct handlers since 2015 and have been certifying canine teams since 2018. I have testified in several large federal narcotic cases as an expert witness to canine behavior, training, and certifying handlers. I was asked to serve as president of PNWK9 in 2022. I look forward to many more years of providing great training, instruction, and guidance to our canine teams in Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, Alaska and British Columbia.
Oregon
John Eckhart | Eckhart K9
John Eckhart is an explosives detection dog trainer and handler working events for the NFL, NBA and various entertainment venues across the Pacific Northwest. John Eckhart retired from the Portland Police Bureau as Assistant Chief of Police. John is a currently a Certifying Official for the Pacific Northwest Police Canine Association and a Security Representative for the National Basketball Association where, in addition to general security duties, he assists with detection dog oversight for select NBA events worldwide. Additionally, John is a K-9 Trial Judge for National Association of Canine Scent Work (NACSW) judging detection dog trails across the Pacific Northwest. John currently owns an explosives detection dog company and has retired law enforcement and military handlers working events throughout the Pacific Northwest. Additionally John trains detection dog teams for law enforcement agencies in Oregon and Washington.
John began his police canine career in 1986 as a Police Service Dog Handler in Portland, Oregon. John has worked and trained Patrol Dogs, Cross Trained Dogs and Single Purpose Detection Dogs for over 30 years. He started Portland’s Detection Dog Program in 1991 and handled the first Detection Dog for the Portland Police Bureau. John is a two-term past president of the Oregon Police Canine Association (OPCA) where he started the Detection Dog component of that association. John authored the State of Oregon Police Anim
British Columbia
Gord McGuinness | Metro Vancouver Transit Police
Gord McGuinness is currently a member of the Metro Vancouver Transit Police Service in British Columbia, Canada. This new assignment follows a 34-year career with the Vancouver Police Department. Prior to his retirement from the VPD, Gord spent 18 of 34 years as a canine handler and worked five police service dogs during his time in the VPD Canine Unit.
For more than a decade Gord held the position of Head Trainer in the Canine Unit where he was responsible for implementing the first single purpose, narcotic and explosive detection dog teams in the history of the Vancouver Police Department. His responsibilities also included the acquisition and training of 21 general duty and 4 detection dog teams. Throughout his time in the Canine Unit, Gord worked his own general duty and explosive detection dog.
In addition to his policing career, Gord operates a private consulting business in which he trains patrol, narcotic and explosive detection dogs for the private security industry. He has worked closely with Fred Helfers, over the past 19 years and is a co-founder of the Pacific Northwest Police Detection Dog Association.
NARCOTIC SITE INSTRUCTORS
EDDY MACVEIGH
Eddy MacVeigh has over 20 years experience managing, working, and training canine units for the private security industry in Explosive Detection, Narcotic Detection, and Personal Protection.
Over his career Eddy was instrumental in building one of Western Canada’s largest private canine units from one team to over forty teams today. During this time Eddy also actively handled his own Protection, Narcotic, and Explosive Detection canines.
Eddys experience lies in deployment of canine units in the marine and aviation industry, playing a key part in implementing detection dog programs in some of Canada’s largest port, aviation and cargo terminals.
Based out of Langley, British Columbia, Eddy currently provides contract training, consulting and kennelling services to law enforcement and private security across Canada.
Eddy has been a member of Pacific Northwest Police Detection Dog Association since 2012 and maintains memberships with the International Association of Bomb Technicians and Investigators (IABTI) and American Society of Industrial Security (ASIS).
CHRISTINA BUNN
JOSH MADSEN
EXPLOSIVE SITE INSTRUCTORS
JOHN ECKHART | Eckhart K9
John Eckhart is an explosives detection dog trainer and handler working events for the NFL, NBA and various entertainment venues across the Pacific Northwest. John Eckhart retired from the Portland Police Bureau as Assistant Chief of Police. John is a currently a Certifying Official for the Pacific Northwest Police Canine Association and a Security Representative for the National Basketball Association where, in addition to general security duties, he assists with detection dog oversight for select NBA events worldwide. Additionally, John is a K-9 Trial Judge for National Association of Canine Scent Work (NACSW) judging detection dog trails across the Pacific Northwest. John currently owns an explosives detection dog company and has retired law enforcement and military handlers working events throughout the Pacific Northwest. Additionally John trains detection dog teams for law enforcement agencies in Oregon and Washington.
Sgt. David Wood |
Royal Canadian Mounted Police – Retired
Police Dog Service Provincial Program Manager/Supervisor
Pacific Region (British Columbia & Yukon Territory)
Joined the RCMP in October 1977 where I eventually got selected for the Police Dog service in 1988. Over my thirty years as a police dog handler, I have worked four German Shepherds utility trained dogs, three cross trained for narcotic detection, one cross trained for explosive detection and one explosive detection training lab. In 2005, I was promoted to the Police Dog Program Manager/Supervisor and was responsible for the Police Dog Program in the Pacific Region providing functional supervision, training and staff development to eighty dog handlers, both patrol and jetway/pipeline drug specialty teams. I was also responsible for training, validations, and operational competency of the two civilian search and rescue dog associations. Canadian Avalanche Rescue Association (CARDA) and British Columbia Search Dog Association. (BCSDA)
I was a designated instructor on National Tactical Emergency Response Courses related to police dog tactics such as, Police Dog Handler Officer Safety Course, Armed Ship Boarding Course, Basic Emergency Response Team “Bush Tracking and Rural Patrol Tactics”, as well as Tactical Team (Crowd Management) Police Dog tactics, as it related to formations and deployments.
I coordinated many major events related to police dog explosive detection prevention and response such as 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver BC, as well as major investigations in Western Canada where multiple explosive detection dog teams were required.
From 2010 to my retirement in 2012, I conducted explosive and narcotic validations of security dog teams in the Province of BC under the authority of the Justice Institute of British Columbia.
Currently, I continue to provide training to explosive, narcotic and search & rescue dog teams in the Pacific Northwest. I have been associated with the Pacific Northwest K9 Detection Association since 2008 as an instruction and training facilitor.