Cadaver dogs (e.g dogs which are trained to detect dead human bodies) always bring a lot of Media attention, and there was no exception when Madeleine Mcann disappeared in 2007, in Portugal. Similarly, when cadaver and blood dogs were used to try to find more evidence in Jersey during an investigation at an orphanage, after the discovery of human remains and several persons reporting to have suffered abuses, during their stay in Haute de La Garenne orphanage. After these two High Profile Cases, handlers and their dogs were “investigated”, in particular by the media, to establish the reliability of such dogs .
As a result, I had the opportunity to do experimental work in order to test their ability to smell blood and putrefied fluids, during different timeframes.
As a product of my research I can say that dogs with this type of training can be extremely useful in the search of human bodies. The search for human blood with cadaver dogs must be done whenever all the presumptive test to find it fail. An experienced handler will be able to give a detailed accurate report, outlining the successes and failures of the search. This report must be made available to all parties in any subsequent court proceedings.
In this particular type of training is important to know how a dead body decomposes, how the smell of a living body changes to a unique scent when death occurs, how environmental conditions can affect the searches and the pattern of scent location. Environmental conditions play a role in dog’s performance.
Unfortunately, the Media not always do their homework!
Related Articles:
My first post will be dedicated to professional handlers who work with cadaver dogs, in particular two persons who worked with me in my Master Dissertation and inspired in many ways my research and motivation, Michael Swindles and Neville Sharp.
