Insights from Kat, the Lost-Pet Detective

In 1996, Kat Albrecht was a police officer and bloodhound handler in Santa Cruz, California. Her dog, AJ, is part of many search and rescue operations, sniffing and finding people lost in the woods.

However, when AJ escaped from Albrecht’s garden, there was no team of expert animal rescuers to rely on. There she sought help from her own chasing dog, a friend who had a golden retriever named Kea. “I knew that Care knew that he would ‘s smell this pillowcase and follow the scent of this missing person’,” recalls Albrecht. “Does she understand, ‘Stop this smelling blanket and find my smelly bloodhound?”

Within 20 minutes, Care spotted AJ relaxing on a stranger’s pouch. For Albrecht, it was a turning point. “We have all sorts of detection dogs: drug detection, bomb detection, termite detection,” she said. “Why don’t you have cat detection dogs? Why don’t we train dogs to follow the scent of lost dogs?”

Albrecht decided to do that, forged an unlikely career as a lost pet detective. Along the way, she worked with researchers to study the behavior of missing cats and set up a Missing Animal Reaction Network. She is no longer looking for a lost pet, but trains others to follow in her footsteps.

Albrecht spoke with the New York Times about her work. This conversation is condensed and edited for clarity.

What strategies and techniques do you use to find a missing pet?

One of the most basic things is the analysis of Lost-PET behavior. Dogs and cats are like apples and oranges. When lost, they behave differently from each other.

Cats hide when they are afraid, sick or injured. And it is often within their territory – one of your garden or your neighbor’s gardens. It’s fine to post a missing cat online, but you’ll need to get permission from your neighbor to go to the yard for a slow, orderly search. That’s because it has been shown to be researching what cats are most likely. They are close, but they are silent and hidden.

Another technique and tactic is the use of cat detection dogs. I choose a dog who wants to get a kitten but never “get” a kitten. You can share the story about one of these recovery. The handler’s name was Karen and her dog’s name was Hello. A skittish cat inside was running away. Hello is tracked from Escape Point to the neighbor’s house, then there is a cat under this deck.

When the owner raw her house, she couldn’t see the cat. However, Karen was very confident in her dog. She said, “My dog ​​claims that there is a cat here.” So the owner was even raw behind her, and she found the cat.

Is there a risk that a skittish cat will be scared of the dog and hide deeper?

That’s exactly what the taste did. He went back further beneath the house. When Karen finds out that the cat is under the deck, she puts Hello in the car. So, yeah, there’s a risk. However, the ability of a dog to say that there is a cat under this house or that there is a cat in this tree pile is a very important clue.

Please back it up. Many people think that search dogs are the answer to finding missing pets. It’s one tool. Cameras are used to monitor traps and feeding stations. It also uses an amplified listening device. It’s innovative to see what technology is there.

How do missing dogs tend to differ from cats’ behavior?

There were cases where dogs were hiding, just like when fireworks were on. However, in general, dogs run.

What’s interesting about dogs is that their recovery is more dependent on people’s actions. When people see this dog running down the sidewalk, do they think this is a lost dog?

A dog found in a rural area – people assume it was abandoned. They are unaware that the dog may have escaped from his home or been involved in a rollover car accident. So even if there is an ID tag, they don’t call the number there because they think that if the owner cares about this dog they won’t loosen it.

What should people do if a dog goes missing?

You have to go out there and broadcast it. So you do things like posting on Facebook, making big neon posters, and more. There are five or more 5 plus 55 rules. If you are traveling 55 miles per hour, I would like to use five words that can be read in 5 seconds. For example, “Lost black poodle, blue colour.” And you place these at the main intersection.

You also need to physically search for your property. Because there have been so many cases in which owners think the dog is missing and the dog is right there.

Any other advice for pet owners?

It is the process of collecting a missing dog or missing cat. Don’t give up immediately.