Overview
- Splash, a 2-year-old Asian small-clawed otter trained by Peace River K9 Search and Rescue, visited the Martin County Sheriff’s Office for a skills demonstration.
- Deputies said his specialized scent detection and recovery training could help find people in bodies of water with poor visibility.
- Trainer Micheal Hadsell said Splash is trained in human remains detection and works with a dive team to direct searchers to hard-to-reach locations.
- The collaboration between the nonprofit and the sheriff’s office was presented as a creative approach to difficult aquatic investigations.
- The trainer said Splash has been deployed on more than 20 missions, and the sheriff’s office indicated it may use him in future water searches if divers cannot quickly locate a person.