By Susan Spisak
In August of 2024, we shared the story of Ollie, a Maltese Shih Tzu Poodle mix from Richmond whose quick actions saved his family. Katie and Fonz Keenan, along with his fur sibling, Annie, remain deeply grateful to their beloved Ollie. His relentless barking woke them as the lower level of their home was engulfed with flames, and the fire was rapidly moving up the stairwell towards their bedroom.
Katie says Ollie is doing well today and is as sweet as ever, and she gives him full credit for the rescue: “Had Ollie not woken us up when he did, we’d all be dead.” Once awoken, Fonz escaped through their bedroom window to their second-story deck, jumped down, grabbed a ladder, and helped the others exit safely. Inspired by both Ollie and the American Humane Society Hero Dog Awards DDN launched the inaugural Hometown Hero Awards to celebrate the extraordinary dogs and people making a difference across Maine.
We received four heartfelt nominations, and rather than limiting our recognition, we decided to honor them all, individually, over the coming months. The Hero Honorees are very dedicated in their own ways: one through dog training, advocacy, and a groundbreaking scent study, another two for shelter/rescue work and fostering, and one who shares her best bud through therapy work. Follow their stories in the next several editions and join us in applauding their community service. Continue sending nominations, we may share more inspiring stories.
Melissa & Captain Love
Hero Honoree Melissa McCue‑McGrath
Melissa McCue‑McGrath, PACT-ATI / ABTC-ATI, Author / Educator, is the first Hero Honoree, and she was nominated by Beth Higgins: “Melissa McCue‑McGrath is the kind of person who makes Maine feel like home as a true Mainer does. She helps dogs who are struggling to find confidence again. She helps families understand their pets with compassion and clarity.” Beth, who has trained under Melissa added, “She brings humor, heart, and deep expertise to every training session.”
Melissa didn’t aspire to be a dog trainer. At 18, she headed to Lake Erie College in northeastern Ohio for a premier Equestrian Program. She longed to be a horse trainer and work with Veterans utilizing Therapeutic Horsemanship. Six weeks into the program, she was bucked off a horse. As she lay in the mud in pain, she thought, “What am I going to do?” (That pain was a spinal injury that took doctors a year to diagnose and properly treat.)
Undeterred, Melissa switched programs, completed her studies there, and earned her B.S. of Psychology in 2003. After college, she moved to Boston, Massachusetts, and decided to adopt a shelter puppy named Sadie. Fate intervened when she met a dog trainer who asked her to work with him as an intern of sorts. Everything clicked…she applied her psychology to dogs and obtained all her certifications. “I never looked back, I can’t imagine doing anything else.
Melissa served as the co-Training Director of New England Dog Training Club (the oldest AKC Obedience club in the country) for 11 years before moving to southern Maine. She then served as a behavior consultant and dog trainer at the Animal Welfare Society, AWS, in Kennebunk until earlier this year.
She decided to expand her own professional dog training endeavors, saying she enjoys reactivity cases, sports work like disc, and scent work. The scent work she trains dogs on is for fun. (No scenting for bombs or explosives — she leaves that to experts.) Scenting is stimulating and natural for dogs: they have up to 300 million scent receptors, compared to humans' 5 million.
A New Direction in Scent Work
In 2023, Melissa’s interest in scent work took an unexpected turn when Virginia Tech and Texas Tech launched a joint study focused on detecting and controlling the invasive spotted lanternfly, or SLF, which can damage plants and vegetation.
The study’s goal was straightforward: train volunteer teams of family dogs and handler/owners to detect hidden SLF egg masses using dead SLF eggs, which retain their scent. With their superior sense of smell, the dogs would lead handlers to the nests. The handlers would then remove the egg masses with a flat card, place them in a bag filled with rubbing alcohol, and help prevent infestation.
Spotted Lantern Fly
The universities reached out through nose work channels, inviting interested handlers to a Zoom session about the national study. After learning about the SLF’s potential impact, Melissa quickly recognized the threat it could pose to Maine. Hardwood and fruit trees, crops, hops, vines, and other plants could all be damaged, with serious consequences for the state’s economy. Intrigued by the project and eager to help protect Maine, she joined the call. She felt the organizers anticipated a small group of perhaps twenty people. Instead, nearly 2,000 tried to log in, overwhelming the meeting platform and forcing the colleges to reschedule with an expanded capacity.
Once she decided to give it a go, Melissa reached out to dog owners who had taken scent classes at AWS. She had many interested parties, so she applied with her “Maine Six” to take part in the study. Her own dog, Captain Love, was part of the group with her then 11-year-old daughter, Ace, serving as his handler. (Today Captain Love is 13 and serves as an educational dog, showing off his SLF scent skills at events.)
She was both flattered and surprised when they were selected for the second cohort group in November of 2023, especially because the SLF had not yet been found in Maine. They were slated to begin in January of 2024, and the study required the dogs to become fluent in the SLF scent within the fourteen-week training window. Melissa was provided mesh scent packets containing flash-frozen SLF eggs to simulate real egg masses, so her “Maine Six” could begin their journey.
They group no idea of the amount of time, challenges, and dedication required to complete through the required steps of the controlled setting. Over the fourteen weeks, the areas studied and tested on were odor recognition, field tests, and distance that the canines could detect the SLF. Unfortunately, one dog had to be pulled due to anxiety, another for illness. The remaining four passed the criteria expected. (The two who dropped out did go through the tests later and passed!)
Melissa’s “Maine Six” contributed data supporting the universities’ hypothesis that pet dogs, guided by their handlers, can be trained to detect invasive spotted lanternflies. The broader study also confirmed that family dogs can learn to find SLF egg masses by scent.
Melissa was excited to take part in what she called a “cool project” that supports this scientific research. She has since added the SLF scent to her nose work classes and, including the “Maine Six,” has trained 25 family dogs to detect the invasive species.
Beth summed up her friend: “What could just be a room full of strangers and their dogs turns into a genuine community…She lifts people up. She makes dogs’ lives better. She strengthens our community. Melissa is exactly what a Hometown Hero looks like.” DDN celebrates her contributions to Maine, and those who she serves.
If you know of a dog or human Hometown Hero, please submit the information to Jenn Rich, jenn@downeastdognews.com or mail it to 16 Tannery Lane Suite 21, Camden, ME 04843.
Note: Per the Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Foresty states the SLF is not known to be established in state as of yet. For more info on the SLF, how to spot, and report them, www.maine.gov/dacf/php/caps/slf/index.shtml.