Kimberly Kelly posted this on the SAR List and I asked permission to re-post it here which she graciously allowed. Loved it!! For those that missed before, and for those that are new, I present to you an encore performance of Slattos Index of Suspicion - credit to Rick Slatten, MN. Enjoy! Slattos Index of Suspicion The presence of one or more items on this list does NOT necessarily mean the canine team standing before you isn’t any good. However, the more items you see, the more you should be suspicious, and the more digging into the team’s background you should do. 1. INCREDIBLE NUMBERS OF “FINDS.” If we added up the number of “finds” claimed by all the dog handlers in North America , it would be a greater number than all the people who have gone lost or missing in recorded history. Working a case where the subject was found while the dog was within a five-mile radius does NOT equate to a find for the dog! A good dog may go its entire career with no more than one or two true “finds.” Some good dogs NEVER get a true find. If the handler is claiming “hundreds of finds”—by the handler himself or a particular dog, ask for more data. Who? When? Where? How can I contact the responsible agency and confirm this? 2. THEY’RE A LEGEND IN THEIR OWN MIND. “My dog found Jimmy Hoffa, Amelia Earhart, Pocahontas, and the Unknown Soldier.” If the only source of information about the team’s capability is the team itself, beware. The handler should be able to give you contacts of official agencies with whom they have worked that will vouch for them. If they “promise” you results, they’re lying. And if they spend more time talking to the media than talking to you or working their dog, fire them and find another team who knows what the primary mission is—finding the subject. Above all other things, the dog and handler have two responsibilities: The dog must detect the scent of the object you seek, and the handler must recognize when the dog is detecting it. Beyond those two things, the fact that the dog can respond to hand signals, shoot a compass bearing, and make coffee all while humping your leg is irrelevant. 3. THEY CALL YOU FIRST. Cold sales calls from a canine handler should be treated with the same suspicion as they would coming from a telephone solicitor or a man in a plaid sport coat standing on your front porch holding a briefcase. Newly-formed teams may need to do some marketing—there’s nothing wrong with that, but their style and manner should discretely communicate competence and confidence, not sell used cars. 4. A “SECRET FORMULA” FOR TRAINING. A good handler should be able to explain—clearly and concisely—how they train, how often they train, why the training works, and how the training is in keeping with accepted best practices. They should also be able to prove to you that they DO train. If they claim a “secret” or “proprietary” method for training that they won’t share, run the other way. 5. A BIG BAG OF REASONS WHY THEIR DOG CAN’T PERFORM. The team of four-wheelers on that distant bluff. The search team member smoking a cigarette. There is no distilled water available for their dog to drink. The wind is from the west on a Tuesday. Beyond trying to optimize environmental conditions for their dog, if the handler makes myriad excuses why their dog doesn’t seem to know its ass from green paint, that’s a red flag. 6. FLAMBOYANT NAMES. The good dogs I’ve known had names like Lacey, Abe, Otter, and Amos. If the dog is called One-Eyed Sally, Three-Day Drunk, or Slap My Ass and Call It Mayonnaise, your eyebrows should go up. (See “Nanook of the North” below.) But then again, “Molly” doesn’t have quite the same ring to it as “The Legendary No-Neutered Sam,” does it? 7. ONE BIG OPERATION MAKES THEM AN EXPERT. There were dozens of dogs in New Orleans and at the World Trade Center . There were also dogs and handlers that maybe should not have been there. There are also outstanding canine teams who have never been to a search of national prominence. Presence at a national disaster does not automatically convey capability through osmosis! If they hang their hat on the fact they were present at the Last Big Thing, find out how they got there, as well as what Little Things they have done that resulted in helping a subject. Then refer to the other items on this list. 8. “NANOOK OF THE NORTH” APPEARANCE. The good handlers I’ve worked with were regular people. French Voyageur clothing, swashbuckler hats with a pheasant feather plume, and three feet of facial hair are not necessary to be a good dog handler. Neither are coveralls and a vest with so many patches and hardware they would look right at home on a Third World Dictator. Any handler is entitled to their own unique personal “pizzazz,” but the farther from mainstream they stray, the more you should wonder. Are they a capable team, or are they marketing an image? Are they looking for the subject, or media exposure? Looking like Gandalf or Captain Jack Sparrow does not add to the effectiveness of the team. I’ll don my Kevlar fire-retardant underwear and take a seat next to Sarah by the campfire… --Rick Slatten Duluth, Minnesota
Posted on: Sat, 02 Aug 2014 22:38:32 +0000
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