Should you Use a Search Dog?

The first thing a missing pet owner often wants to know is if I own or have access to a search dog. Despite the momentary unintentional attack on my ego, as if my pet-finding skills are no match for a scent dog, I calmly explain the pros and the cons of using a search/scent dog.

It should be noted that search dogs are not machines. There is no doubt that their sense of smell is much more finely tuned than that of a human, but let’s slow down. Scent dogs can be great in the right situation or not-so great in certain situations. Also, let’s not put pressure on scent dogs to perform miracles!

There are a lot of variables that can make life difficult for a search dog. These include…

• Heat, dryness, and the passage of time.
• Concrete and asphalt.
• Car traffic can obliterate a scent.
• Lawn mowers which can obscure, dilute, and scatter the scent trail.

You get the picture.

Finding your lost pet can be difficult for a scent dog in the best of situations. The best circumstances for hiring a search dog are:

• Cloudy, cool, non-stormy weather.
• A scent trail that is less than 48 hours old.
• When you have something that only contains the scent of your dog. (bedding, toy, etc.)
• When you live in the country as opposed to the city.
• When your dog has a personality that won’t cause it to approach strangers.
• When you have a recent sighting.

In general, if you have the right circumstances for
a search dog, hiring one will be beneficial most of the time and ineffective on occasion.

You should not hire a search dog if:
• Your dog has been missing for a week or more, and you have had no recent sightings.
• You have many pets and nothing in your home that contains ONLY the scent of the target animal.
• You walk your dog all around the neighborhood every day, and the search dog would have trouble telling today’s scent from yesterday’s scent.
• The person working the search dog can’t give you references from past clients – this is important!

So why would you ever hire a search dog? Well, there’s always the chance this will be that lucky day. Also, even if the search dog doesn’t find your dog right away, she can provide many benefits such as a direction of travel. A search dog can also tell you where your dog is not. So weigh the pros and cons. Search dogs can be a useful tool in the right situations, but using one doesn’t necessarily increase the chances of recovering your pet.