A Florida trainer with Peace River K9 Search and Rescue is turning to an unlikely partner in search and recovery efforts: an otter.
Splash, a specially trained otter, is being used to assist in locating human remains in waterways, offering a new approach to a challenge that has long frustrated recovery teams.
The idea came from Mike Hadsell, a recovery diver with decades of experience searching for missing persons underwater and president of Peace River K9 Search and Rescue. After years of difficult searches, Hadsell said he was inspired to think differently.
“I was inspired by an article I read about otters hunting by scent underwater,” Hadsell said. “As a recovery diver, I was always upset when we could not find a missing person underwater, even though I knew they were there but just inaccessible.”
With 46 years of experience training dogs, Hadsell applied similar techniques to train Splash for recovery work as part of the organization’s dive team.
Much of the otter’s training mirrors traditional K-9 scent detection methods. Splash is trained to recognize target odors through repetition and is rewarded with food when successful.
“The majority of Splash’s training is very similar to K-9 training,” Hadsell explained. “We imprint the target odor with repetition and pair our cue word ‘Haffa’ with a food reward.”
Otters’ natural traits make them especially suited for the work. Their high metabolism requires them to eat multiple times a day, allowing for frequent training sessions. Once Splash mastered scent detection on land, training transitioned to the water, where he quickly adapted.
“Once Splash is solid on finding on land, we move to water hides,” Hadsell said. “Splash moved over to the water without a problem.”
The results have been promising. According to Hadsell, Splash has participated in 31 searches so far, contributing to eight confirmed recoveries.
While still in the early stages, Hadsell believes the program at Peace River K9 Search and Rescue has the potential to make a meaningful difference.
Each year, approximately 600,000 people are reported missing in the United States. While the majority of cases are eventually resolved, thousands remain unsolved—particularly those involving bodies of water, where recovery efforts can be difficult.
Hadsell hopes that training otters for recovery work could help change that.
“It is my sincere desire that the training of otters for recovery work will result in more cases being resolved and more families getting closure,” he said.
For families waiting for answers, even one additional recovery can make a lasting impact.
SOURCE: Peace River K9 Search and Rescue
