“The canine sense of smell is legendary and, as with many legends, it is sometimes hard to find the sources and separate scientific facts from urban legends” – Goldblatt et al. (2009) A well trained search dog should not make frequent mistakes, but how accurate are they? How often do search dogs miss locating what …
How Accurate are Search Dogs? – Part 1: Area Detection Dogs Read More »
This is a review of a research paper published in Animals (2018) on “Successful search methods used to locate missing cats and likely locations where missing cats found,” which was a collaboration between researchers at the University of Queensland (Australia), Missing Pet Partnership, Missing Animal Response Network, and Lost Pet Research & Recovery.Study MethodsThis study …
If you have been involved in lost pet search and recovery for a while, then you have probably heard of Missing Pet Partnership, a national non-profit organization dedicated to reuniting lost pets with their owners/guardians. Otherwise, you may have seen the name mentioned on this website or other websites related to lost pet recovery. However, …
More dogs get lost around the 4th of July than any other time of the year. Growing up, we lost my dog Blueberry several times due to fireworks, but luckily we always got her back. Don’t risk going through the trauma and heartache of losing your dog, and take a little preparation to keep them …
Top Tips to Keep Your Dog Safe and Calm this 4th of July Read More »
Trapping with a humane cage trap is one of the most effective methods for catching an escaped indoor-only cat or displaced (lost away from home) outdoor-access cat. However, it is very important to select the right cat trap and set it up, bait it, and monitor it properly. The wrong trap may injure your cat …
Dogs breeds commonly used in scent detection work include Labrador Retrievers, Bloodhounds, German Shepherds, Malinois, Beagles and several other hounds and spaniels. These breeds have traditionally been used as hunting dogs, search and rescue dogs, police dogs and military dogs. There is a common assumption (in part supported by their large number of scent receptors) …
Pugs Outperform German Shepherds at Scent Detection Test Read More »
Advertising online can be an effective way to get the word out about your missing dog or cat. However, you need to get your ad seen by the right people. One way to do this is through boosting a Facebook post and using audience targeting. To do a boosted post you pay Facebook to take …
Unfortunately, there are few research studies on lost pet behavior. This is a list of citations and abstracts of published research papers related to lost pet behavior and recovery. There are links to a few of the papers. You may be able to find other papers by visiting your local college or university and checking …
Research Studies on Lost Pet Behavior and Recovery Read More »
When a cat or small dog goes missing, pet owners/guardians are often concerned that s/he could have fallen prey to a coyote or other predator. As a pet detective for over ten years, I have often been asked the question: “Do coyotes carry cats back to their dens to eat them?” Of more concern, I’ve …
Missing Pet Partnership Northeast Regional Training – Mystic, CT – May 2017 Missing Pet Partnership is holding a Northeast Regional Training on Saturday, May 20th through Wednesday, May 24th. This training is open to anyone interested in learning about lost pet recovery work whether or not they have completed a Missing Animal Response (MAR) Technician course. …
Since there is so little information on cat homing behavior, I started a research survey in 2013. These are the survey results as of July 2018. If your cat has ever displayed homing behavior, please consider taking this very short survey. To take the survey, click here.Homing DefinitionSome lost cats are able to find their way home …
Wildlife cameras (also called trail or game cameras) are often recommended by pet detectives as a method to help locate missing cats. They can be particularly helpful to determine the presence of an escaped indoor-only cat, since these cats tend to hide nearby and venture out at night. Wildlife cameras are also commonly used by wildlife biologists in …
