Donovan Hunter

Donovan Hunter has been handling and training law enforcement/military working dogs for 16 years. His canine career started with military service. Donovan was enlisted in the United States Army for 7.5 years in a special operations unit (1st Battalion 75th Ranger Regiment) from 2004-2011. Donovan deployed 8 times to combat zones in Afghanistan and Iraq, 5 of which were as a multipurpose K9 handler.  He then honorably separated from the Army as a Staff Sergeant and became a police officer for the Austin Police Department where he also served as a K9 handler. He was a member of the undercover tactical Street Narcotics unit in the Organized Crime Division where he and his K9 were constantly utilized in patrol, tactical, and undercover operations. Donovan was featured on the HBO documentary War Dogs, A Soldiers Best Friend and was the technical advisor for the feature film “Dog”. He is currently the owner and head trainer of Von Jäger K9 LLC., which provides K9 training for military, Law Enforcement and private agencies, as well as, basic and advanced obedience and K9 sales.  Donovan specializes in special operations tactics, law enforcement operations, and Military/law enforcement K9 utilization. He has maintained his Oklahoma peace officer license and serves as a reserve officer for Grove Police Department.

Class: Creating Purpose Driven Canines

Donovan Hunter specializes in special operations tactics, law enforcement operations and Military/Law Enforcement K9 utilization. He has maintained his Oklahoma peace officer license and serves as a reserve officer for Grove Police Department. Donovan will teach handlers how to identify, channel and control the drives of their canine. Whether working in obedience, scent work or bite work, the handler will learn techniques and the psychology behind them, that will enhance or diminish the genetically inherent drives for a successful working dog!

Class: Just a Dog Stop?

This course provides law enforcement officers with a practical, legally sound approach to traffic stops involving the use of an evidence detection canine. Designed for both handlers and patrol officers, it covers key case law, search and seizure principles and how to structure roadside investigations to support lawful canine deployment. Participants will learn to identify indicators of criminal activity, when and if to integrate the canine effectively into the stop and how to properly reinforce successful alerts to maintain reliability. By the end of the course, attendees will be better equipped to establish probable cause, articulate their actions and confidently utilize a narcotics detection canine in real-world interdiction scenarios.