Missing Animal Response  – Lost Pet Recovery Training

Pet Detective Kat Albrecht offers 8-week online missing animal response (MAR) or lost pet recovery training courses for animal control officers, animal industry professionals, volunteer dog and/or cat rescuers, and a 10-week pet detective training/certification webinar course designed primarily for individuals interested in offering professional lost pet recovery services as a fee-based service, including the use of K9 pet detectives.

Training Options

10-week Pet Detective Missing Animal Response (MAR) Field Course

The (approx.) 60-hour Missing Animal Response or “MAR” Field course includes training in the analysis of lost pet behaviors, instruction in how to creatively capture skittish dogs and skittish cats, the use of K9 pet detective search dogs to find lost pets, lost pet forensics, search theory, animal tracking, and lost pet scenarios.

Private Investigators & Retired Police Officers

We’ve seen a dramatic increase in both private investigators and retired police officers taking our training and launching fee-based lost pet recovery services. In some cases, retired police officers and P.I.’s handle the P.I. licensing requirements, marketing, and business operations while they collaborate with MAR K9 handlers who work trained tracking dogs and subcontract under the P.I. license.

This training is perfect for pet industry professionals (pet sitters, dog walkers, dog trainers, etc.) interested in adding a new service to their existing business. It is also possible for someone not currently working in the animal industry to use Kat’s training to launch their own pet detective business, just as professional Pet Detectives Kim Freeman, Lisa Bukowczyk, Landa Coldiron and Annalisa Berns have all done.

This training is only offered as a “Self-Paced” course (see below). The cost for this 10-week course is $600.00. To start the registration process, fill out the Register Online page.

8-week Rescue Volunteer / Shelter Worker Course

This training is designed specifically for individuals who are animal shelter staff, admins of lost pet Facebook pages and lost-and-found websites, dog rescue group volunteers and cat rescue group / TNR volunteers (or anyone who wants to specialize in finding just dogs or just cats). This training is vital to build a foundation in the principles of lost pet recovery and has helped animal shelters to triple, and in one case quadruple, their RTO (return to owner) rates for shelter cats!

The training covers both lost dog and lost cat recovery plus includes recorded webinars, recorded guest speakers, and a weekly meeting with lead trainer Kat Albrecht (or her training associates) where they’ll answer any questions that you have. The two sections from the 10-week MAR Field course that are NOT taught in the Rescue / Shelter course are “Building Your Pet Detective Business” and “How to Train a MAR K9.”

Our 8-week Rescue Volunteer / Shelter Worker Course is occasionally offered as a “group course” where you will meet once a week at a scheduled time along with several other fellow students. Unlike the self-paced course, group courses are less flexible since you’ll be required to meet at a specific day / time each week along with your other group members. If you miss a meeting, a link to a recording of the meeting that you missed will be sent to you.        

If you do not plan to train a dog to find lost pets and you don’t plan to launch a pet detective business, then the 8-week course (either self-paced or a group course) is a great option for you! The cost for this 8-week course is $400.00 for the self-paced option, $350.00 for the group course, and $300.00 per student if you register four (or more) people from your team. To start the registration process or to check available dates for group courses, fill out the Register Online page.

10-Week Missing Animal Response (MAR)  Field Curriculum

The MAR Course consists of a training manual (PDF files that Kat’s staff will e-mail to you) and 10 weeks of training that includes:

• Weekly self-paced 2- to 3-hour webinar (plus time spent on the Internet to view various training videos) that students will watch as their schedule permits during the week
• Homework assignments
• Discussion with experienced pet detectives on a national Yahoo e-group discussion list (a list that is only available for MAR-trained pet detectives and MAR students in training)
• Weekly live 2-hour Q&A session led by Kat Albrecht (and occasional special guests).
• We now offer a “Self-Paced MAR Field Course” if you’re not able to work our scheduled course into your schedule.

If you’d like to watch a sample topic that you’ll be trained on in this course, watch this YouTube clip regarding how to approach a skittish dog:

and this clip below regarding detecting animal track evidence.

Misc. Information

If you plan to offer fee-based services, be aware that a few states (in the USA) have laws that say you must have a private investigator’s license in order to search for lost or stolen pets as a business. Not all states have this requirement, but if you plan to take this training in order to launch for-profit pet detective services, you should research the licensing requirements in your state. If your intention is simply to help people and animals then you can take this course and put your skills to work in helping others in your community. You could even form a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization and offer your pet detective tracking services as a donation-based service (instead of as a for-profit fee-based business).

Fees

The cost for the 10-week Missing Animal Response (MAR) Field course Self-Paced option is $600.00. Full payment upon registration is encouraged, although we accept a minimum deposit of $200.00 (due before the first day of class) to secure your space in this course. A second minimum payment of $200.00 is required by week #5 and the final payment ($200.00) will be due prior to the last day of class. Unfortunately, we are not able to take monthly payments for this course. If funding is an issue, we strongly suggest that you use Bill Me Later, a service provided through PayPal.

The cost for the 8-week Rescue / Volunteer / Shelter Worker Course is $400.00 for the self-paced option, $350.00 for the group course, and $300.00 per student if you register four (or more) people from your team. Full payment upon registration is encouraged, although we accept a minimum deposit of $200.00 (due before the first day of class) and your final payment of $150.00 is due prior to the 5th week of class.

Course Topics That Will Be Covered

The topics covered in these courses include History of MAR, Concept of MAR, Lost Pet Problem, Where Do Lost Pets Go, Lost Pet Behaviors, Grief Avoidance, Search Theory, Search & Recovery Applications, Utilization of MAR Search Dogs, How to / How NOT to Approach Stray Dogs, Lost Dog Recovery Techniques, Tagging, Intersection Alerts, Creative Dog Captures, Magnet Dog & Snappy Snare Captures, Lost Cat Recovery Techniques, Detect & Reunite, Trap & Reunite, Magnet Cats, Creative Cat Captures, Other Species, Flyers vs. Posters, Inattentional Blindness, Physical Evidence, Animal Tracking, Forensics Training, Pet Loss / Grief Counseling Programs, Ethics in MAR, Search Hazards, Lost Pet Phone Consultations, Insurance, Predator Risk Analysis, Building Your Pet Detective Business, equipment, how long can scent survive, scent detection vs. scent discrimination, step-by-step MAR K9 evaluations, step-by-step MAR Cat Detection Review, step-by-step MAR Trailing dog Review, and an explanation of MAR K9 training.

To register for this course, go to our registration page and sign up now! If you have questions for Kat’s staff, please e-mail info@katalbrecht.com.

How to Prepare

Kat strongly recommends (but does not require) that you read the following books before you participate in her Missing Animal Response (MAR) Field Course. While all of these books contain elements that will be covered in the course, the first eleven have the most application and are highly recommended:

• BLINK by Malcolm Gladwell*
• PET TRACKER: The Amazing Story of Rachel the K-9 Pet Detective by Kat Albrecht (first published in 2004 under the title The Lost Pet Chronicles – Pet Tracker is the updated version)
• DOG DETECTIVES: Train Your Dog to Find Lost Pets by Kat Albrecht*
• CORMAC: The Tale of a Dog Gone Missing by Sonny Brewer*
• The Lost Dog Recovery Guide by Annalisa Berns
• The Lost Cat Recovery Guide by Annalisa Berns
• INSIDE OF A DOG: What Dogs See, Smell, and Know by Alexandra Horowitz
• SWAY: The Irresistible Pull of Irrational Behavior by Ori Brafman and Rom Brafman
• WHO SWITCHED OFF MY BRAIN? Controlling Toxic Thoughts and Emotions by Dr. Caroline Leaf
• The Knowledge Illusion by Phillip Fernbach, Steven Sloman
• theoatmeal.com/comics/believe (please read this fascinating article about neuroscience and “The Backfire Effect”)
• Red Dog Rising by Jeff Schettler
• ANIMALS IN TRANSLATION by Temple Grandin
• SCENT and the SCENTING DOG by William Syrotuck
• READY to SERVE, READY to SAVE! Strategies of Real-Life Search & Rescue Missions by Susan Bulanda
• DOG GONE MISSING: Why Dogs Go Missing and How to Find Them by Amy Mal
• ONE AT A TIME: A Week in an American Animal Shelter by Diane Leigh and Marilee Geyer
• SHERLOCK BONES by John Keane
• THE HIDDEN LIFE OF DOGS by Elizabeth Marshall Thomas
• FOR THE LOVE OF A DOG by Patricia McConnell, Ph.D.
• LOST CAT: A True Story of Love, Desperation, and GPS Technology by Caroline Paul.
• Poppy in the Wild by Teresa Rhyme
• Home At Last: True Lost Dog Stories by Bette Anunson Anderson
• Bring Jade Home by Michelle Caffrey
• STRAYS: The True Story of a Lost Cat, A Homeless Man, and Their Journey Across America” by Britt Collins

Shelter Training

Kat is also available to travel to your community to teach a 2-day training for animal shelter staff, volunteers, humane societies, animal coalitions, rescue groups, and Facebook Lost Pet Recovery Teams. Please visit our Shelter Training page for more details.