Dax & Alice - Hero Dog Awards - Interview with John Forlenza - Dax’s handler and Tara Murillo handler to Alice

The Woof Life Show - A Podcast for Dog Lovers

In this episode of The Woof Life Show the podcast for dog lovers, Lauren Farricker chats with Tara Murillo who is the dog mom and handler of Alice who won the Service Hero Dog Award. The Woof Life also got the honor of interviewing Sheriff’s Deputy John Forlenza who is the handler to Dax the Hero dog winner of the Law Enforcement/ Arson category.

Tara Murillo and her family were victims of senseless gun violence which changed their life in an instant. In 2015, Antonio was a normal, playful nine-year old who loved soccer and his friends. Then, on a normal day, while riding in the back of his parents’ SUV with his younger brothers on the way to a family dinner, a man fired three to five bullets into their car and shot him in the head. Since that day Antonio has been fighting the battle of a lifetime. He spent 18 days in a coma and has endured five brain surgeries.

Antonio not only battles seizures, but migraines, balance issues, spells and more. In October of 2016, Antonio was paired with his service dog, Alice, from Guardian Angels Medical Service Dogs in Florida. His mom, Tara, says, “Alice is a hero in our eyes, because without her, Antonio would not be able to do the simple things in life that we take for granted.”

We then get an opportunity to chat with John Forlenza who is the handler to Dax.

Dax began his successful career with the Lake County (IL) Sheriff’s Office almost four years ago. He has been directly responsible for tracking and successfully apprehending over 70 suspects. Dax has also been accountable for tracking and finding dozens of missing or endangered children and adults. Dax has been used for over 100 narcotic searches resulting in the seizure of over 17 kilos of cocaine, heroin and other narcotics, hundreds of pounds of cannabis, approximately three quarters of a million dollars in currency, dozens of firearms, and vehicles.

Dax’s tireless drive, dedication to training, love for police work, and incredible success stories have gained him thousands of supporters from across the country. Dax has proven to be an outstanding K9 hero!

The 9th Annual American Humane Hero Dog Awards® will premiere on the Hallmark Channel on October 21st at 8pm ET/ PT. The event was hosted by Beth Stern and James Denton and presenters included Kristin Chenoweth, Shannen Doherty, Trevor Donovan, Danielle Fishel, Vivica A. Fox, Sarah

Michelle Gellar, Jenna Johnson, Wendi McLendon-Covey, Ally Maki, Larissa Wohl, Cameron Mathison, Debbie Matenopoulo, Kristoffer Polaha, Brandon McMillan, Barbara Niven, Roselyn Sanchez, Ariel Winter, Eric Winter, and Sofia Wylie.