Needless to say, the members of BSARD get MANY questions about ourselves, our dogs, training and handling SAR dogs, and Search and Rescue work in general. Here are some of the most common.
Don’t see anything close to your question? Then ask your question via email at genmgr@buckeyesardogs.org. (Please do not use this email address for emergency requests, as it is not constantly monitored. Instead call the emergency telephone number at the top of the page.) We update our FAQ regularly, so we welcome new questions.
How are you called to respond to a search?
BSARD does not self-deploy, which means we must be contacted (“called out”) by an authorized representative of the police, fire department, or other emergency services agency in charge of the Missing Person Incident. Even if we hear of a search in progress, we do not simply show up on-site. Details on calling out the team are on our Callout and Response Process page.
This person has been missing for several hours. Can dogs still be effective?
Our K9 teams frequently works trails and search areas that are two or more days old. Although the environment and weather will affect the viability of a trail over time, there is still a reasonable possibility that a mantrailing team will be able to at least determine a probable direction of travel. Likewise, a wilderness area search team works with the air currents to determine where a missing subject is at the present time instead of where they traveled earlier.
We’ve had people searching all over the area for the missing person. Can dogs still be effective?
Our mantrailing teams and many of our wilderness area search teams train to be scent-specific and are typically not affected by contaminated trails or search areas. We actually tell the Search Manager on scene to continue their search efforts even after we’ve arrived and are deployed in the field.
Can BSARD find a lost pet?
We do not use our dogs to find missing pets, because we’ve trained our dogs to ignore animal scents so they can focus on the scent of the human for which they are searching. However, there are multiple resources available that can help you find a missing pet. See more about this on the “Lost Pets” page.
Do you train dogs for police departments, fire departments, or private individuals?
We own, handle and train our own dogs for this work. We do not train dogs for third parties, nor do we sell trained dogs as a business. There are plenty of businesses in the market who train dogs and/or handlers for profit. We do occasionally take on a new handler as a trainee as time and resources permit, and we sometimes train with one or more of the other volunteer Search and Rescue organizations with which we partner.
Do you ever chase the bad guys, like in the movies?
We never go into a “hot zone” because we’re not trained for it, our dogs are not trained for it, and safety is always our primary concern. That’s a job for the police, and they do it well.
How much money do you make with your search dogs?
Zero. There are no salaries or wages paid to any handlers or staff. We are a non-profit, all-volunteer organization and do not charge the community, family, or any others for our service. The organization does accept the occasional tax-deductible donation to cover equipment, operating expenses and so forth, and you can see more on the How You Can Help page.
What do all these abbreviations and acronyms mean?
As in any field, there are as number of shortcuts to the lingo used within the Search and Rescue community. Look at our glossary for acronyms, abbreviations and terms we often use.
Where can I learn more about K9 Search and Rescue?
There is a collection of book titles and several links to other web sites on our Resource List page.
Who composes a search dog team?
At a Missing Person Incident, the command staff will deploy one or more teams on any number of defined tasks. In the K9 search world, each search dog team is typically made up of a minimum of three partners: the search dog, the dog handler, and one or more “flankers.” Each partner has a specific job to perform during the search task. More details can be found on The Search Dog Team page.
What breeds make the best search dogs?
Many breeds can be trained for at least some aspect of Search and Rescue work. Scent-oriented working and hunting breeds such as German Shepherds, Labrador Retrievers, Bloodhounds, and Belgian Malinoises are most common, but there are many working examples of Norwegian Elkhounds, Rottweilers, Cattle Dogs, Vislas, Standard Poodles, Dachshunds, Terriers, Mutts and the list goes on and on. Smaller breeds often excel in those disciplines where size or strength are less of a factor and can even be at an advantage over larger breeds. The handler only needs to be realistic about any breed’s limitations and adjust their expectations to fit. More information is available on The “Typical” Search Dog page.
What other characteristics make a good search dog?
The personality of the dog is critical to their performance as a SAR dog. In general, what one looks for in a search dog is a high play drive, an inquisitive nature, self-confidence, and focus. The dog also must behave and reliably follow commands, and must not exhibit aggressive behavior toward humans or other dogs. More information is available on the The “Typical” Search Dog page.
Which are better search dogs, males or females?
Nope. Not going there. See The “Typical” Search Dog to see why.
How old can a dog start training for Search and Rescue? How long is a search dog’s career?
Most handlers begin training their dog as early as possible. Pups and young dogs are still forming cerebral synapses, so commands and behaviors become deeply ingrained into the dog’s psyche. It also helps the handler “iron out” undesirable or quirky behaviors. Also the younger dog will normally have a longer search career and a handler wants to get as many working years as possible. Nonetheless, older dogs still can become top-notch search dogs. BSARD alumnus Linda Perry often trained older dogs for SAR work. She started Gertie, one of her Rottweilers, at 8 years old, and Gertie worked until she was 14! See more on The “Typical” Search Dog page.
What happens when the dogs retire?
Our search dog partners are also our pets. Most dogs will work as long as they are physically able (health and stamina) and still enjoy the work (interest). When the handler (or the dog) decides it’s time to retire, BSARD will take that dog off the “active” list, but they usually still come to trainings and we set up problems for them that are within their capabilities. They live with us for the rest of their lives.
What are the characteristics of a search dog handler?
A lot of people have misconceptions about what SAR is like in the real world, usually because the only exposure they have are short scenes they’ve seen on television or in movies. In reality it takes a lot of time, money, and effort. The work is demanding and often dangerous for the dog, the handler, and the flanker, and it’s almost always under very unpleasant conditions. A handler must be physically fit enough and psychologically strong enough to put in long hours in crappy weather while a family is hoping you will bring their loved one back to them. You don’t always come back with good news; often you come back with no news at all. Still, the work can be very rewarding and is even enjoyable in its own right. Most handlers perform the work for decades. Take a look at The Search Dog Handler for more details.
My dog shows signs they might be a good fit. How do I train them for Search and Rescue?
At its most basic level, a handler is training their search dog like they would train any hunting dog; it’s glorified hide-and-seek. The difference is that the search dog is hunting people, in most cases a specific person to the exclusion of all others. The truth is, except for teaching the dog to focus on the specific scent, it is already an expert! In essence, a handler is not so much “training the dog” as training themselves to “read” the body language and behaviors the dogs are displaying. See Training the Search K9 for more information.
What is your success rate?
A handler can reasonably estimate a success rate based on their training exercises, where the subject and situation are known to a high degree. However, this is not a realistic question in the context of actual searches, because of the overwhelming number of variables.
Can you guarantee you’ll find who or what you’re searching for?
No one should ever “guarantee” a find. In a real search situation there are always an unknown number of variables that can affect the probability of detection. There’s a significant probability that in a given area there aren’t even any clues to be found. Sometimes finding nothing is a valuable clue to the overall search effort, and sometimes it isn’t. The objective, through training and repetition, is to minimize the probability of either a false positive (an alert where there isn’t a source) or a false negative (no alert where there is a source).