Trailing Canine Search Specialist

Trailing (Scent Specific) Canine Search Specialist Certification Exam (Trailing CSS)

The AERIE Trailing Canine Search Specialist Certification Examination (CE) is designed to identify the minimum knowledge, skills and abilities needed by canine team during land search operations in varied terrain at night and during daylight hours for a single subject located at the end of a track with the canine on lead. These certifications recognize the need for further training to acquire the knowledge, skills, and experience needed to become a fully competent canine handler in a wide variety of land search operations.

There are two separate Trailing Canine Search Specialist CEs

• Trailing Canine Search Specialist – Level 2 CE is designed to identify the minimum knowledge, skills and abilities needed by an individual and their canine partner to perform as a SAR Canine Team during land search operations searching to locate a single subject using a track aged for six (6) to twelve (12) hours over varied terrain through significant scent contamination during daylight or nighttime hours and is a prerequisite for higher level AERIE canine search specialist examinations.

• Trailing Canine Search Specialist – Level 1 CE is designed to identify the minimum knowledge, skills and abilities needed by an individual and their canine partner to perform as a SAR Canine Team during land search operations searching to locate a single subject using a track aged for sixteen (16) to twenty-four (24) hours over varied terrain through significant scent contamination during daylight or nighttime hours.

Required Skills for both levels (see the full set of requirements and prerequisites)

• Canine
  • Successfully determine direction of travel
  • Successfully scent discriminate through significant contamination
• Handler
  • Correctly identifies indications on scent behavior and canine’s final response behavior
  • Maintains control of canine
• Team
  • Successfully locates the subject
  • Remains approximately 100M or less from the original track

All of these examinations and certifications meet or exceeds industry standard and the criteria of FEMA 508-8 Typed Resource Definitions – Search and Rescue Resources 11/14/2005

Trailing Canine Search Specialist – Level 2

• The candidate and dog will be evaluated using track that meets the following guidelines:
  • Aged six (6) to twelve (12) hours,
  • Approximately ½ to ¾ mile in length (.8 to 1.2 km)
  • Minimum of four (4) surfaces, one trail or road crossing and one area of significant contamination or two (2) cross tracks
  • Two (2) to four (4) changes of direction
• The candidate and dog will be evaluated using a maximum time limit of one hour (1.5) including breaks.

Trailing Canine Search Specialist – Level 1

Prerequisites:  AERIE Trailing Canine Search Specialist – Level 2

• The candidate and dog will be evaluated using track that meets the following guidelines:
  • Aged sixteen (16) to twenty-four (24) hours,
  • Approximately ¾ to one (1) mile in length (1.2 to 1.6 km)
  • Minimum of four (4) surfaces,
  • One (1) hard surface road crossing and one (1) area of significant contamination or two (2) cross tracks
  • Two (2) to five (5) changes of direction
• The candidate and dog will be evaluated using a maximum time limit of one and a half hours (1.5) including breaks.