Stephen Mackenzie better known as “Doc” in the K9 field died on 3/21/21. Because of the growing need for search and detection dogs because of 9/11 he started a program which was such a success and attracted students from all over the world and preparing them to enter canine related fields including national security, law enforcement, veterinary medicine, canine-assisted therapy and much more. As a professor at SUNY, his students will never forget his teachings and professionalism. He received the Master Trainer Award from the North American Police Work Dog Association in 2017 recognizing him for his work with utility, cadaver, narcotics, and wild life detection dogs and awarded SUNY’s Distinguished Service Professorship Award in 2020. He was a board member of the Northeast Wilderness Search and Rescue and founding member of the New York State Canine Association. He taught decades for the Eden International Police K9 Conference and taught for numerous working dog organizations around the world and wrote K9 training columns for Dog Sports, Working Dog and Police magazines. Dr. Mackenzie was widely recognized for his work in law enforcement agencies nationwide, and had been a Deputy Sheriff for the Schoharie County Sheriff’s Office for 25 years and as a K-9 handler and trainer for seven. He is the author of Decoys and Aggression: A Police K9 Training Manual, Aggression Control: Teaching the “Out” and Police Officer’s Guide to K9 Searches. Dr. Mackenzie held a PhD in the genetics of behavior from Cornell University. He was a court recognized expert in animal behavior at both the state and federal levels in both criminal and civil cases. Mackenzie was a member of the college’s Animal Science program for nearly 40 years. He also developed an agreement to train dogs housed at a local animal shelter, a program that provided both practical experience for students and increased the chances of adoption for dogs in the program. At the time of his death, Mackenzie was working with campus residential life staff and external partners to develop a puppy-raising program on campus, a partnership that represented a significant commitment in support of the work of an organization training canine companions for the nation’s military veterans. He is survived by his devoted wife Laurie (Fink) Mackenzie, daughter Dawn and son Alex. Gifts in Doc’s memory may be made to the Dr. Stephen Mackenzie Scholarship in Canine Training and Management or the Dr. Stephen Mackenzie Canine Equipment Endowment. Gifts can be mailed in the endowment name specified payable to SUNYCobleskil Foundation, 106 Suffolk Circle, 228 Knapp Hall , Cobleskill NY 12043. On line giving is also available at www.cobleskill.edu/give
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