Arson Dog Training Schools

Arson dogs and their handlers work the scenes of fires to determine if any accelerant has been used to start the fire. If so, the arson dog will point out the area where the scent is strongest so that the handler can take samples and send them into a police forensics lab for testing. Arson dogs save thousands of dollars and days worth of time because of their sensitive nose. An arson dog can cover the same ground in 10 minutes that would take a human investigator days.

  1. Southern Star Ranch K9 Training Center

    • Southern Star Ranch K9 Training Center is located near Austin, Texas. The center sits on 100 acres of woodland. The center trains a variety of specialty canines and is known for the performance of its arson dogs. The dogs, typically retrievers or retriever mixes, attend a minimum of 12 weeks of schooling. Handlers must spend two weeks onsite learning to work with their canine partners. According to the website, Southern Star Ranch K9 Training Center is licensed with the the State of Texas, the Texas Department of Public Safety, and the U.S. Justice Department Drug Enforcement Agency.

    Maine State Criminal Justice Academy

    • This Labrador retriever accepts his reward after a day of hard work.

      Hosted by the Maine State Criminal Justice Academy and sponsored by State Farm Insurance, the Arson Dog Program provides fully trained canines to agencies that need them. State Farm Insurance pays for the dog and the handler training program. The Arson Dog Program uses Labrador retrievers due to their superior ability to discriminate between similar odors.

    K9 University

    • Geared towards training the arson dog trainer, K9 University offers a six-week online program to certify a dog trainer in training arson dogs and providing dogs to a variety of agencies. K9 University has been educating and certifying trainers since 1990 and is a member of the National Association of Fire Investigators.