INBTI-InterNational Bloodhound Training Institute

On 5–7 June 2026, the first INBTI mantrailing seminar in Finland took place in Espoo.

Three days of practical work, trail analysis, scent exercises, and teamwork. Participants focused on understanding the dog’s behaviour on the trail, the handler’s role, tactical thinking, and the practical application of the method in real-life conditions.

We would like to express our sincere gratitude to the organizers for making this seminar possible, and to all participants for their serious work, openness to learning, and respect for the dog as a true partner in search work.

INBTI is about system, method, trust, and the professional growth of the team.

**SUCCESSFUL CASE***

North Dakota Highway Patrol K9 Handlers

Trooper Nevon Heisler with K9 Gary
Trooper Steven Clark with K9 Lorace

ND Highway Patrol K9 units credited with helping locate missing juvenile The North Dakota Highway Patrol said a pair of man-trailing K9s played a key role in locating a missing juvenile in Rolette County on Tuesday.

**SUCCESSFUL CASE***

Pittsylvania County Sheriff’s Office K9 Handler Deputy Larry Crews

May 17, 2026: K9 Joker was requested by a local police department in reference to multiple complaints of subjects trespassing on railroad property. Footprints were found in the area the morning after a complaint the night before. Joker was deployed off of a set of the footprints and immediately began tracking. Joker tracked through multiple fields and then entered a wooded area. Joker tracked through this and across creeks, continuing to find footprints along the way. Joker tracked to the rear building of a local boarding school dormitory. The track was called at this point and administrators were alerted to students possibly being involved. Administrators later told us that multiple students had admitted to being the ones who were down there. Track was 8+ hours old and just under a mile distance.

https://www.inbti.com/index.php/seminars-europe/232-inbti-mantrailing-seminar-estonia-paernu-2

INBTI Mantrailing Seminar Estonia, Pärnu Instructors: Mònica Díaz Trias, Spain Horst Konrad, Austria The mantrailing seminar takes place in Pärnu, Estonia — a charming coastal city offering

**SUCCESSFUL CASE***

Pittsylvania County Sheriff’s Office K9 Handler Deputy Larry Crews

May 2026: K9 Joker was requested by the local sheriffs department for a missing 17 year old. Subject had assaulted his mom and brother before fleeing out the back door prior to officers arriving on scene. Deputies searched the area with no luck and Joker was called. Using a pillow and casting in the backyard Joker tracked around 3/4 of a mile through a field and around a wooded area. Joker tracked to a backyard of a neighbor’s house and alerted to the back porch. Juvenile was located hiding under a couch on the porch and taken into custody.

Great seminar last weekend in Ennis, Texas with Instructors Kevin Pirtle, Mike Szelc and Denise Sacca.

**SUCCESSFUL CASE***
INBTI Member Campbell County Sheriff’s Office K9 Handler Lieutenant Cameron Byrd

On January 18, 2026 I responded to assist a neighboring jurisdiction with a missing 26 year old. Upon arrival I transferred scent from the drivers seat of her vehicle. We were located at a park with several people and dogs walking around. T-Bone was scented from the vehicle and took trail going into the park and then made a hard right turn into the woods before coming out on another trail. T-Bone trailed down this trail leading to rail road tracks. Once at the railroad tracks T-Bone made a right turn and we trailed down the middle of the tracks approximately .25 miles. I observed a female matching the description approximately 100 yards in front of us as we were trailing. T-Bone began to alert and walked up to the female who was experiencing hypothermia after jumping in the river. The temperature was approximately 30° and the female had been missing for several hours. Total trail was .98 miles.

Proud of this team and their accomplishments. Congratulations Byrd.

Last week three INBTI instructors -Ernest Capdevila and Mònica Díaz Trias from Spain and Irina Brūnina from Latvia- had the opportunity to offer a Workshop and Evaluations in Taiwan.
The workshop, organised by the TDDA (Taiwan Detection Dog Association), the largest SAR group in Taiwan, was held in the premises of the Taiwan National Fire Agency Training Center in Nantou, the third largest fire training base in the world and the largest in Asia.
24 teams and more than 20 observers -all of them firefighters, police and search and rescue K9 handlers with a lot of experience-, participated in the 5-day mantrailing training where we shared with them the Kocher Method of mantrailing.
All teams are operational SAR teams wanting to add mantrailing to their disciplines. Some are already training, some are new. The Instructors offered them a general overview of TKM from the start (Intensities, component training) to more components like VPU, NSI and Castings, essential for operational teams so they have an idea of what they can achieve through training.
They also offered them evaluations and are happy to say that one team passed! So congratulations to the first INBTI Certified K9 team in Asia!
Thank you TDDA for putting this together. We look forward to many more seminars and workshops.