Down the Rabbit Hole
The Trail That Proved the Mission 

Shortly after founding our charity in late 2020 we received our fourth call-out in December 2020. Two terriers had gone missing from rural Lostwithiel and had not been seen for 2 days. 

We deployed two of our search dogs, Lexi and Holly. Search Dog Holly took scent at the place last seen and followed the 2 day old scent, with an indication on a rabbit warren going under fencing in another field. Trailing for 1km Holly then cleared the field and adjacent woods to check those areas for scent indicating that the dogs had not left the search area. Lexi was put onto the scent article and trailed to the same rabbit warren going under the fence and indicated at the entrance to the warren.

The search team started looking for tracking clues and for other exits when some muted whines were heard coming from underground. The search team tried to start digging the lost dogs out when it became apparent how big the warren was and that assistance would be needed. Bodmin Fire Service Green watch were called to continue with the rescue. The two dogs were found alive and bought out of the warren unharmed some 5 hours after the start of our search and over 2 days since they had gone missing.

Reflecting on this job we all agreed the lost dogs would never have been found without our search dogs amazing trails that day, everyone was amazed. The team knew we had made the right decision with the founding of this charity and since then we have grown in numbers, experience and expertise.

We have attended over 250 call-outs in the first 4 and half years of operation. All our operational search dogs have found lost dogs and assisted in rescues and recoveries. We have given positive direction of travel indications to allow dogs to be safely trapped and rescued. We have given positive scent indications to rabbit warrens, farm pits, hay bale towers, mine shafts, river banks, ponds and lakes. Our dogs have given indications of trail ends for both missing dogs and people at cliff edges and harbour edges. Our dogs have given no-scent indications to discount false sightings as well as no scent indications at road sides where dogs have been picked up into a vehicle.

We have worked with HM Coastguard, RNLI, Fire Rescue Service, DogLost Cornwall, RPSCA Cornwall, local vets and other organisations to help save lives. We are members of UKSAR and the Lost Dog Tracking Network. We were invited to demonstrate our skills on Channel 5’s Dog Lost Live series as well as asked to shoot the Treasure Tails episode “Super Dog”. Every trail we work our dogs show us time and again how amazing they are, we trust our dogs implicitly to help us reunite lost loved ones.