At the Port St. Lucie Police Department, along with the assistance of the Fort Pierce Police Department in Florida, officers responded to an emergency call concerning a missing 13-year-old on Wednesday.
Multiple officers had searched the area, and a surveillance video spotted the youngster walking in the opposite direction of his home.
The assistance of the Port St. Lucie Police Department’s bloodhounds specially trained for tracking soon arrived.
K9 Hoot was given a piece of the boy’s clothing to sniff, and after he picked up the scent of the child, he began his search. Hoot, accompanied by his handler, K9 Officer Burdick, were able to track the autistic teen, who was found wandering in the woods alongside the railroad track.
Bloodhounds possess the most acute sense of smell of any dog breed. Their sense of smell is estimated to be 1,000 to 1 million times more sensitive than humans. Hound dogs have 230 to 300 million scent receptors and are known to have been able to track faint, days old scents miles away. Their droopy ears, wrinkled skin and specialized scent membrane assist them in trapping and concentrating odors.
At the same time Hoot was approaching the teen, a drone from the Fort Pierce Police Department had been able to illuminate the missing child.
The youngster was reunited with his family.
Many thanks to everyone involved in helping their neighbors.
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