Courtesy of Christy Vales

Game Warden, K-9 Officers Honored

Earlier this year, Uvalde County game warden Rachel Kellner was recognized as Texas Game Warden of the Year, and two K-9 officers, Ruger and Bosch, were commissioned and given their badged collars.

Kellner heads the West Texas Game Warden Critical Incident Team and recently created Women Who Wander, an annual outreach event to inspire and educate women about outdoor recreation.

Ruger and partner Captain Christy Vales (pictured above) have assisted not only game wardens, but the FBI, DEA, Homeland Security, Border Patrol, Texas Rangers, and local and county law enforcement officers with recovering multiple firearms, narcotics and currency. They have also helped locate missing people and have brought poachers to justice.

Bosch and handler game warden Joni Owen (TPWD’s second certified human remains detection team) assisted game wardens in the recovery of drowning victims and assisted the Texas Rangers, FBI agents and multiple local agencies from around the state on blood evidence searches, cold cases and missing persons cases.

Want to help fund more wonderful canines? Texas Parks and Wildlife Foundation is raising money for a K-9 Assistance Fund to replace these dogs as they retire (goal: $70,000 to replace seven K-9s).