The search process of professional detection dog teams in realistic environments
Abstract
Scent detection work is a form of interspecies cooperation. Dogs sample odors that handlers cannot perceive, and handlers decide where the team searches and which of the dogs' responses counts as a find. However, detection performance is predominantly measured by outcomes and dog characteristics. To better observe the search process itself, we collected data at two judged detection events (109 searches of 37 professional narcotics teams). All searches were video-recorded and included an outdoor area, a vehicle, and a building search, each with two targets and food and currency distractors. We synchronized computer-vision tracking of dogs and handlers with continuous behavioral coding. We observed variation across teams and in total 42\% of targets were found. Finds were rarely missed because dogs never came close to a target or because handlers did not call an indication. Rather, most were missed at the encounter itself, as dogs came within 1~m of nearly every target but indicated on only about one in six of these passes. Handlers did not behave differently near targets than near distractors before their dogs responded. Finding targets was moderately consistent within teams, whereas false calls depended on the individual search and on specific items. Observing the search process suggests that success is a result of the dog's response, the handler's decision, and their coordination.
Related
- A complete quantum process model for physically realistic photo-detection in the joint photon-number and spectral degrees of freedom
- Inpainting to search for premerger massive black hole binaries in realistic LISA datasets
- Machine Learning Assisted Design of Complex and High Entropy Alloys by Hybrid HiPIMS/Pulsed-DC PVD Process for Low Carbon Energy Applications in Extreme Environments
- Search for the process e+e-→ f1(1285) at the SND detector
- Understanding Search and Decision Errors in Liver Metastasis Detection and the Effects of Lower Radiation Dose
BibTeX
@misc{kaufhold2026search,
title = {{The search process of professional detection dog teams in realistic environments}},
author = {Stephan P. Kaufhold and Jack Terwilliger and Samantha Kefer and Federico Rossano},
howpublished = {arXiv},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.48550/arxiv.2610.07129},
eprint = {2610.07129},
archivePrefix = {arXiv},
url = {https://arxiv.org/abs/2610.07129},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - UNPB
TI - The search process of professional detection dog teams in realistic environments
AU - Stephan P. Kaufhold
AU - Jack Terwilliger
AU - Samantha Kefer
AU - Federico Rossano
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/05
PB - arXiv
DO - 10.48550/arxiv.2610.07129
UR - https://arxiv.org/abs/2610.07129
AB - Scent detection work is a form of interspecies cooperation. Dogs sample odors that handlers cannot perceive, and handlers decide where the team searches and which of the dogs' responses counts as a find. However, detection performance is predominantly measured by outcomes and dog characteristics. To better observe the search process itself, we collected data at two judged detection events (109 searches of 37 professional narcotics teams). All searches were video-recorded and included an outdoor area, a vehicle, and a building search, each with two targets and food and currency distractors. We synchronized computer-vision tracking of dogs and handlers with continuous behavioral coding. We observed variation across teams and in total 42\% of targets were found. Finds were rarely missed because dogs never came close to a target or because handlers did not call an indication. Rather, most were missed at the encounter itself, as dogs came within 1~m of nearly every target but indicated on only about one in six of these passes. Handlers did not behave differently near targets than near distractors before their dogs responded. Finding targets was moderately consistent within teams, whereas false calls depended on the individual search and on specific items. Observing the search process suggests that success is a result of the dog's response, the handler's decision, and their coordination.
ER -