Discipline: HRD

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 Human Remain Detection

The HRD Lead is Pam Harding. There are 6 K9s who are either certified, pre-certified, a team in training or a prospect in HRD. 

Human Remain Detection is one of three disiplines SCVSAR K9 can provide when it comes to finding missing people. This group works closely with the Snohomish County Medical Examiner's Office. HRD dogs are deployed to find deceased people. This can be from a few hours old, such as when we get called out to find a suicidal person, or decades old to find clues to a cold case. These dogs work off leash, similar to airscent. Since human remains smell drastically different than live human, HRD dogs are looking for a certain chemical smell that deceased humans release instead of a scent pool a live human creates for airscent. Don't get us wrong, deceased humans can create just as much as a scent pool a live human can create, the smell is just different. 

Just like how one can teach a dog to smell low blood sugar in a diabetic vs teaching a MWD to smell out bombs, the process is similar. You reward the dog for smelling a certain chemical, just so happens that we ask our HRD dogs to smell "stinky humans". These dogs work with their nose up.

In order to certify, the HRD K9 must be able to search three different one acre areas. Two of the three areas need to have 0-3 sources (human remains), one blank (empty). The team has 30 minutes per acre to clear it. One source must be a "high hide" ~6ft high, one must be burried between 6-12in deep with three other false burrials. 

HRD SAR K9s need to have a Final Trained Response (FTR). Instead of doing a recall-refind, they must stay at the deceased subject/source no matter what. This is done by sitting, laying down, or staring. The handler can try to pull the dog away from source but it is their job to convince the handler that there is something there whether a whole body, a bone or a few mL of blood.  

K9 Mira

K9 Dash

 

  

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