Searching for human remains and other body fluid is unlike any other dog detection work as the target scent is constantly evolving. In the main, other scent targets such as narcotics or explosives do not change over relative short periods of time. Therefore it is important to understand these changes and to be able to train a dog to recognise the various stages of decomposition.

Over many years I have worked in partnership with various universities and professional bodies (pardon the pun !) to identify how subtle changes can affect a dog’s performance. Various studies have been undertaken in clinical conditions and these have identified not only the dog’s inherent strengths but also, and more importantly, its weaknesses.

These studies have includes : Age of Bones; Quantity of Blood and Timescales; Stages of Decomposition; Other Meat Scents; Environmental Conditions i.e. soil types.