Lost Pet Locating

Locating a lost pet

$350 to arrive, fly, and search for around 2 hours
Mileage add-on if over 60 miles from Bartlett, IL
Additional trips negotiable

The success of finding a lost pet depends on many factors. I will try to help you determine if hiring me is a good idea or not. Here is a video from a different company about this decision. Knowing the general area where the pet might be is important, so searching after a recent sighting is vital. I cannot find what the drone does not fly over. Cats like to hide under porches, in garages, etc. which make them very difficult to locate. While recent sightings are important, I have been hired to rule out an area. Another important consideration is that my job is to locate the pet, not recover the pet. Very often, I can get pet owners within feet of their pet, but the pet is in fight or flight mode and will run if the owner calls out. In fact, typically recovering a pet requires counter-intuitive thinking! Lost Dogs Illinois is a great resource. Listing your dog on petFBI.org and contacting volunteer pet search groups is also recommended. The best conditions to search include cloudy days or an hour or so after the sun sets. Searching in a sun lit or sun warmed environment does not work well for the thermal camera, and the use of the drone in compact neighborhoods does not usually yield a successful find. Reach out to me with the location we will be searching, the details about the pet, and the last known sighting, and I can help determine if my services are right for you.

FAQs and Tips:

Recovery tips Playlist - Not my playlist, but a very good collection of videos about making the decision about hiring a thermal drone pilot and how to recover a missing pet.
Calming Dog Recovery Video - Owner pet recovery is one of the ways to get your pet back. This video talks about the process.
What to expect - This isn't my video but I subscribe to this group and it describes what the process looks like.
CAT Searches - Again, not my video, but Chris does a great job explaining the challenges when searching for a cat using a thermal drone.
The DJI Matrice 30T is an awesome tool. It takes two batteries and flies around 31 minutes depending on conditions. I have 8 batteries and a way to charge spent batteries so I can stay in the search for a long time. The drone can fly in light rain/snow, and up to 30 miles per hour winds. It has a very bright spotlight and a 200x hybrid zoom to identify heat sources well above the trees. I also have an Infrared Spotlight that can be used to identify heat sources without turning on a visible spotlight. That being said, searches in areas with a full canopy in the summer are tough as the thermal camera must be able to penetrate through the gaps between the leaves. I will also have a 24" monitor with me so you can help in the search. And yes, the whole drone kit is expensive which is partially why I need to charge for my services.
Yes, I do need a license to do this. The FAA requires pilots to have a Part 107 commercial drone license. I need to recertify every two years and the drones need to be registered. Some areas also require FAA clearance to fly. Again, this is also a reason for the fee I charge.
A long way...Up to 9 miles under perfect conditions, but FAA rules require that i be able to visually see the drone without aid for the entire flight.
Yes, you learn by failing, and I crashed my first 3 drones, but, knock on wood, I haven't crashed one in a while.
Success rate? Scammers like to quote a 97% success rate. They reach out to pet owners after they post on Facebook or other social media sites. They make promises and take money up front before not showing up. I take payment after I fly for you. I find a lot of pets and sometimes I find the same pet multiple nights as recovery is usually the hard part. I also get a lot of "last option" calls when a pet has not been since in weeks, and these searches usually do not result in success.
Nope, I can't shoot hot dogs or tranquillizer darts from my drone.
I accept cash, Paypal, Zelle and Venmo AFTER the search.

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