Kamloops Search and Rescue’s newest recruit has a name

KAMLOOPS – It's official. After hundreds of people came together to suggest names for Kamloops Search and Rescue's newest recruit, the yellow lab will now go by Ranger.

Search and Rescue says on its Facebook page that Ranger's handler, Mike Ritcey, went through more than 500 name suggestions for the puppy.

After changing his mind a few times, Ritcey decided Ranger was the perfect name. 

Raegan Birch Markel suggested the winning name and won a Kamloops Search and Rescue T-shirt.

Search and Rescue also said in its post that although there were many suggestions to name the pup after a person, dog handlers tend to shy away from doing that.

"While naming a dog after someone can be seen as a tribute to that person, the failure to validate can take away from that tribute, and many dogs don’t end up making the final cut," the post says. 

The search team turned to the public for help naming the yellow lab last week. One of the group's search dogs, Ruby, died after a battle with cancer last month.

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