It almost looks like he’s smiling!

Hello friends-

I’ve been out of the office for a few days in St. Louis working with NAPWDA and their amazing group of K9 work dogs…there were bomb, accelerant, cadaver, search/rescue and other types of dogs. Melanie (my webmaster) and I volunteered to be decoys at the “area search” station and with the help of Master Trainer Mike Perkins, we landed the job of “decoys”.

This meant that we needed to “hide” in the woods, while each handler took their respective dog through the paces and sent them off looking for us. Since these dogs are also protection dogs (and are used in law enforcement to find suspects), we either needed to put on a bite suit or crawl up a ladder into a tree stand quietly and wait for the dog to find us. Once they did – it was “game on” as the dogs would bark and intimidate while we waited for the handlers to come secure and reward them. Remember, this is training and these men and women need to keep their animals in top shape!

So, this cute pup was my first “lesson” for the day. You’ll notice that I took this picture from about 12 feet up in the air, and had I been any closer to the ground he might have ripped my boots off. It almost looks a little like he’s smiling, but make no mistake- he was all business and could smell my fear.

I like taking a little time out of my busy life to give back to the law enforcement and other agency groups when I can because they actually do lead thankless careers- it’s obvious that their dedication and devotion to protect us civilians just comes from within…so thank you to all of you that provide safety and security to the rest of us that don’t realize it enough. You’re our heroes.

Lastly – it was a fun day and I didn’t get bitten by any K9 dogs- only mosquitoes. They we out to get me!

Have a great afternoon and I’ll be back with some awesome Mission Repair news soon.

Best, Ryan

We’re working a booth at NAPWDA next week!

Hello friends-

We’re in final preparations to work the 2014 NAPWDA workshop in Eureka, Missouri next week. What is NAPWDA you ask? Of course, it’s the North American Police Work Dog Association show! We’ve got a special connection with our local Police Department in Olathe, Kansas and my other business, Mission Survivor, supplies equipment and goods to Police Departments all over the country!

Did you know that I’ve been through the Police Academy?

Ok, it’s not the “real” Police Academy, but more specifically the “Citizen’s Police Academy” that is put on each year through the Olathe PD and it was a blast. It was a good time for me to learn about Police work and to also volunteer to get zapped with a Taser, but that’s a whole different story! It’s on Youtube 😉

So why talk about this? Well, I’m going to be out of the office for a few days (Until Thursday, May 8th) so I’m going to leave you in the competent hands of my General Manager, Troy Harris at the helm of the ship. Email him here if you need him!

I won’t be totally out of touch though – the show actually runs at night so we will be working “remotely”. I might post up at a local Starbucks or even try out the lounge Wifi from the hotel, but certainly I’ll send some pictures of some dogs, our Mission Survivor booth and me in my gear. It’s the ultimate marketing piece when I get my tactical goodies on…and it makes me feel like a tough guy. Like a cop.

Things should be up and running smoothly at the Mission Repair headquarters while I’m away. If not, I’ll take care of business from afar while simultaneously watching the Police dogs work! If you’re interested, and if you’re in town, there is a public display of the Police K9 capabilities on Wednesday, May 7th, at 7pm. It’s a great time…more details to follow!

Talk to you soon, Ryan