Cadaver Dog Handbook

by Andrew Rebmann

Intended for those who train and handle cadaver dogs, this book also encompasses information for those who work closely with them, such as police, death investigators, and anthropologists. Its interdisciplinary approach is useful to any member of a forensic team who regularly participates in or evaluates the results of the human remains search effort.
Cadaver Dog Handbook sets out the principles and procedures for the training and handling of dogs for the location of human remains. It explains scent theory and its applications, introduces basic training and searching strategies/tactics, and covers the legal and taphonomic issues associated with dog searches. Intended for those who train and handle cadaver dogs, this book also encompasses information for those who work closely with them, such as police, death investigators, and anthropologists. Its interdisciplinary approach is useful to any member of a forensic team who regularly participates in or evaluates the results of the human remains search effort.

Genres: Nonfiction, Dogs

228 pages, Hardcover

First published August 29, 2000

Reviews

[A.E. Hellstorm]

Very good overview on how to train a cadaver dog. The book goes through everything you need to know, from how the dog's nose works, to how scent forms depending on landscape, wind, and weather, to how to train the dog for specific tasks, and how to work with the dog, including how to work with map, compass and GPS. It also have a chapter about legal matters and how to be a witness in a homicide case, as well as how you write reports. Very good, easy to understand illustrations. Overall a very informative book that I can recommend to anyone who is interested in how to train a dog for a specific task.

[Christie Bane]

This is a manual on training dogs to detect and alert to the scent of human remains, so of course I didn’t expect it to be a page turner. It is the single book I’ve seen recommended most often in my quest for everything SAR-related, and although it’s older and I don’t have a lot of experience to base this judgment on, I do feel like it is solid on training advice, description of how scent travels, and information on the process of decomposition after death. Can’t wait to train my own HRD dog some day.

[skeptic]

Great technical book!

[Casey]

Fantastic book! I will have to re-read to keep information fresh 🤯🐕🐕🐕🐕💀💀💀

[Aggie]

So this is a technical book on how to train your cadaver dog and how to prevent a lot of problems cadaver dogs normally end up with. If you don't have or plan to have a cadaver dog that you are training, you can probably just skip this one. If you are a handler or plan to be a handler this is by far the best resource out there today, it's pretty much a mandatory read for new members that join our search team.