When someone goes missing in Kitsap County, the sheriff’s office is often the first call family or friends make to report it. The party is usually located within 24 to 48 hours and the crisis resolves on its own, but if things escalate into something potentially life-threatening, the Kitsap County Search Dogs organization is called in. Its canines provide specialized and trained assistance with locating lost, injured, or missing people; the organization also helps victims of natural or man-made disasters throughout the area.
Alex Carrus has seen it all in his four years as an active KCSD handler. His team includes the K-9 Lucy Lou, a German Shepard with preternatural sensory abilities whom he adopted as a puppy. Having lost two animals in the months before getting her, Carrus was in no hurry to take in another — but as he remembers his son-in-law predicting, this dog was special.
Now a married dad of five and grandfather to three grandkids, Carrus came to Western Washington from Michigan in the late 1990s to be based at Naval Base Kitsap in Bangor. He met his wife in 1999 and, after he started building a family with her, retired from the Navy in 2017.
“I needed to find a hobby after the military,” he said. “I thought about becoming a police officer or possibly a detective. I really just wanted to figure out my new purpose in life.”
Unbeknownst to him when they first crossed paths, Lucy Lou would be a big part of finding that purpose. Six months after adopting her, Carrus was struck by a moment that made it clear that his pup was special.
“My grandkids were over staying the night and my grandson came out of the back of the house with a piece of pizza,” he recalled. “He had climbed a tree, jumped over the fire pit, and stopped by the swing set with it in his hand.”
When he and his wife came outside with Lucy to join his grandson, they watched the German Shepherd jump off the porch and follow the scent trail left by the pizza. As she traced the exact route it had taken a few minutes earlier, Carrus remembers looking at his wife and asking, “Did you just see that?”
A new Kitsap County Search Dogs team was born. On the advice of his wife and friends, Carrus contacted KCSD the following week. After a full assessment and evaluation, he and Lucy completed a training program with K-9 Track Northwest in Bellingham before being accepted into the KCSD handler program as the organization’s newest canine search team.
Not all searches result in locating the living. Among the more poignant of Carrus and Lucy’s experiences involved locating the remains of a missing girl.
“I was able to scent Lucy off of the individual’s shoes that were left at the end of a dock at 3 o’clock in the morning,” he said. “She immediately went to the corner of the dock and had a change of behavior that I have never seen. We worked the dock all over and at the end Lucy went back to the corner and gave me a final trained response.”
Divers ultimately recovered the body and brought a semblance of peace to the family.
“They will not have to go years wondering where their loved one is,” Carrus said. “I would prefer happier endings, but we don’t have a choice when searching for missing people.”
You get the impression that Carrus is one of those guys who doesn’t like to brag about his achievements. But after 800 “tracks,” KCSD Board Chair Travis Hull describes him as “an integral part of Kitsap County Search Dogs due to his patience, optimistic outlook in all situations, drive to help his community, and tight bond with his K-9 Lucy.”
“Every callout is a chance to give hope back to someone on their worst day, and Alex and Lucy are always willing to answer that call, day or night, in all weather conditions,” Hull added. Carrus said that he and Lucy are committed to continuing their work as long as they’re able. “If you are missing,” he said, “we will find you.”
