Search Dogs Hone Skills with Weekly Practice

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(top) Cooper sits in front of the green bracelet his handler placed in the field.

(above) Kota is trained to stay with a victim and bark for her handler. Tala (below) returns to handler Greg Hicks and leads him to the victim.

Photos by Jay Thompson
(posted July 9)

In the mind of a search and rescue dog, a mission to find a missing person is nothing more than a game of hide and seek. But for the dog handlers of Midwest Search Dogs, a 501(c)3 volunteer organization, the mission is no game.

Timing is crucial when trying to find a missing person. That is why the seven member group trains every Tuesday and every other Sunday with different scenarios. Not only does the dog receive training, but the handler observes the dog's performance to gain better assessment of the dog's skills.

According to President Greg Hicks, a handler might have a preconceived idea that he wants to have an air scent dog, but the dog's nature might dictate otherwise. The dog might excel in human remains and cadaver searches, or article searches.

Kota, an Australian Shepherd, has been trained for cadaver and live searches. Hicks said the group recently went to Wabash in May in search of a two-year-old's body. He said law enforcement contacted them to cover a specific area. Unfortunately, the search came up empty.

For live missing person's cases, Tala, an air scent dog, is used. Hicks demonstrated the search by releasing Tala to run free. Covering as much ground in a short amount of time is critical for live missing person cases. She can cover an area equivalent to what 60 or 70 people could. A bell is secured to her collar so her handler can hear her. It is possible to lose track of a dog on wilderness searches.

A human sheds about 40,000 cells per minute, creating a scent cloud around us. As a person walks, the scent spreads out into a cone shape. A dog deduces where the person is by zigzagging back and forth in the cone until it can isolate the source of the scent. Once discovered, Tala ran back to Hicks barking to indicate that she discovered the missing person. The bark indicates that Hicks is to follow her.

Certification from multiple professional groups, including the National Association for Search and Rescue, International Police Work Dog Association, and Indiana Department of Homeland Security's Search and Rescue Academy is required for the handlers and dogs before they are able to go on a search.

Team member Danielle Parker said the organization receives about 6 inquiries a month from prospective members, but most fail to follow through because of the certification requirements for the all volunteer position.

The team continues to perfect their skills by training in various wooded locations. Although they have trained at Conseco and the RCA Dome, Parker explained that FEMA would be called out for natural disasters and incidents like the collapse of the World Trade Towers.

Parker said the team will only respond cases if they are asked by law enforcement or EMA. "The chain of command keeps us safe," she said.

They do not respond to a private individuals call for a missing relative.

She said the team was involved in a reenactment for Court TV where all three dogs were together. She said in a real mission that would have never have happened because each dog is trained specifically for a particular function.

The training begins in a progressive stage when they are puppies. Hicks said he taught Tala by having his wife hold the dog and he would go across the room. She would use the command "go search" as she released the dog. Hicks kept moving farther away in each session until he was no longer in visible range, forcing the dog to track by smell.

Kathy Eckstein is training her ten month old Blue Tick Coon Hound Nina to search for missing persons. Nina has not been certified so she cannot go on searches. The team's July 1 training exposed Nina to scent distractions of geese and geese feces while searching for Parker. Eckstein even added an extra distraction by sending her daughter Evelyn to sit beside Parker. Eckstein wanted to test Nina to see if she would find Parker based on Nina sniffing Parker's car keys or run to Evelyn because she is with the dog everyday.

Chelsea Gill said they set up different searching scenarios all the time. One time, they had screaming victims to test the dogs reactions. Gill said often times a victim is screaming for help. Gill explained that Kota reacted differently when using an elderly person in simulated search and rescue. She did not bark as much. She sensed the victim's frailty.

Gill's dog Cooper is trained for evidence recovery, when he finds the evidence he lays down with his front legs around the evidence. He barks at the find but he does not touch it as not to tamper with the evidence.
Copper has found items as small as nails driven in the ground or paper clips.

To become a member usually takes about 18 months to go though the certification process. Parker said the testing is more than having a trained, obedient dog. She said the part of the testing requires the handler to count paces during a woodland search in order to tell law enforcement the direction and distance to the find. She said it difficult when crossing terrain and logs. Gill interjected "sliding down a hill equals four paces." Compass and map reading are also essential so the handlers can maneuver in uncivilized areas without getting lost.