Pet Recovery Process Explained
HOW THIS WORKS
We begin w/ a consultation to determine the best plan of action for your situation. Signs are a must for every lost pet. EPIC signs are designed by us and sent to you for printing/laminating. Once it is established that search dogs will be the best route, we will then speak w/ you about a scent article. A SCENT ARTICLE is an item used by your pet that would have your pet’s scent on it. We will go over with you how to properly secure this item so that there is minimal contamination. At this point, we will work to get you on our schedule for a search w/ the K-9s.
Please keep in mind that this a general “snapshot” of “how this works”. Each case is unique and your action plan will be based on your specific needs. For more info: How This Works
DEPLOYING SEARCH DOGS
Although Search dogs are not always needed, when they are, they are invaluable. Even though “walk up finds” are rare, the dogs can get us information we otherwise would not have. They can indicate to us where your pet is spending time. The dogs can also show us articles of interest along the way. Ie: tuffs of hair caught on a fence, a leash or collar slipped by your pet, or even scat from your pet that contains clues of what your pet might be eating, thus giving us ideas of possible food sources.
Search dogs can also be used for “scent checks” or DOT (Direction of Travel). This is a very important job for our K-9s. Being able to rule out false sightings and getting a direction of your pet’s travel is vital to keeping you on track. For more info: Deploying Search Dogs
EPIC’s SEARCH K-9s
Each dog on our team is EPIC qualified and approved. This means that the K-9 has gone through HANDS ON field training and has successfully completed a variety of test trials in a timely manner. Examples would be blind trails, trails that test scent discrimination, pick up situations etc.. These trails are done so that we can make sure each team deployed knows how to handle each situation.
The K-9 Partner has to be able to rely on their dog’s skills and their own ability to read “sign”. As pet trackers, we have to be able to find signs that your pet has been in the area.
These are just some of the trials we put our dogs and their partner through before deploying them. This is also very typical of how we continuously train our dogs to keep them at the top of their game.