2008 MAR Seminar Schedule

In addition to our 5-1/2 day MAR Technician certification course, Missing Pet Partnership offers an abbreviated (2-1/2 day)low-cost, non-certification MAR Lost Pet First Responder seminar for shelter workers, rescue groups, and TNR volunteers, as well as people who simply want to volunteer to search for lost pets in their community. For a full description of both our Lost Pet First Responder and MAR Technician courses, visit both the Volunteer and For-Profit Pet Detective Training pages.

Here's our Training Schedule for 2008:

San Jose, CALIFORNIA Confirmed Host: San Jose Animal Care Center 2750 Monterey Road, San Jose, CA www.sanjoseanimals.com	June 20-25, 2008	CONFIRMED! - Now Accepting Registrations (register with MPP)	MAR Technician Certification and Lost Pet First Responder Course	MAR Technician $625.00; First Responder $150.00
Seattle, WASHINGTON Confirmed Host: Missing Pet Partnership	August 8-13, 2008	CONFIRMED - Now accepting Registrations (register with MPP)	MAR Technician Certification and Lost Pet First Responder Course	MAR Technician $625.00; First Responder $150.00
West Swanzey, NEW HAMPSHIRE Confirmed Host: Monadnock Humane Society Route 10 South, West Swanzey, NH www.monadpets.org	October 10-15, 2008	CONFIRMED! Now Accepting Registrations (register with MPP)	MAR Technician Certification and Lost Pet First Responder Course	MAR Technician $625.00; First Responder $150.00
Longmont (Boulder) COLORADO Confirmed Host: Longmont Humane Society 9595 Nelson Road, Longmont, CO www.longmonthumane.org	November 7-12, 2008	CONFIRMED! Now Accepting Registrations (register with MPP)	MAR Technician Certification and Lost Pet First Responder Course	MAR Technician $625.00; First Responder $150.00

SEMINAR FEES:

Lost Pet First Responder (volunteer) Course Fee is $150.00

MAR Technician Certification (feebased pet detective) Course Fee is $625.00

These fees cover snacks, training materials, and instructor fees.

K9 POLICY:

Only 10 participants will be allowed to bring a dog to this seminar (provided it is vaccinated and not aggressive towards people, cats, or other dogs). We will spend 8 to 12 hours evaluating and training dogs for MAR work (weather and time permitting). Participants not asked to bring a dog will observe and assist with this training.

TYPICAL SCHEDULE:

Here's what the schedule for the San Jose, Seattle, West Swanzey, and Longmont seminars will look like:

FRIDAY	8:00 am to 4:00 pm	MAR TECH K9 Evals
	6:00 pm to 9:00 pm	MAR Tech/First Responder Classroom Training
SATURDAY	8:00 am to 5:00 pm	MAR Tech/First Responder Classroom Training
SUNDAY	8:00 am to 5:00 pm	MAR Tech/First Responder Classroom Training
MONDAY	8:00 am to 10:00 am	MAR TECH K9 Training
	11:00 am to 4:00 pm	MAR TECH Classroom
	6:00 pm	OPTIONAL GROUP DINNER
	8:30 pm to 10:00 pm	MANDATORY Evening Forensics Training
TUESDAY	8:00 am to 10:00 am	MAR TECH K9 Training
	11:00 am to 5:00 pm	MAR TECH Classroom
WEDNESDAY	8:00 am to 10:00 am	MAR TECH K9 Training
	11:00 am to 4:00 Pm	MAR TECH Classroom
	4:00 pm	Final Exam

We apologize, but our seminar scheduled for May 2008 in Hickory Corners, Michigan has been cancelled.

How To Pre-Register

Pre-Registration means that you will supply your contact information so that Missing Pet Partnership can send you registration materials. When you pre-register, you are under no obligation to complete your registration. Only when you have paid your registration fees (or a deposit) will you be considered registered and your space in the seminar will be secure.

How To Prepare For Our Seminars

To prepare for our MAR Technician program, please make every attempt to take the following training courses:

Missing Pet Partnership and HomeAgain have partnered to create an on-line lost pet recovery training module at www.petdetectivetraining.com This module has great information that will help you for either the MAR Technician or Lost Pet First Responder course.

Pet First Aid Training from www.petfirstaidonline.com (Tuition $35.00) or from a similar source (i.e., American Red Cross Pet First Aid, etc.). This is a prerequisite course that is required for those taking the MAR Technician course before we will certify you!

FEMA offers several courses at training.fema.gov. Click on "FEMA Independent Study," "Our Courses," and follow the directions. All FEMA courses are self-paced and FREE of charge! The below FEMA courses will prepare you to search for lost pets after disasters:

FEMA Course IS-55 Household Hazardous Materials: A Guide for Citizens
FEMA Course IS-10 Animals in Disasters: Module A: Awareness and Preparation
FEMA Course IS-11 Animals in Disasters: Module B: Community Planning
FEMA Course IS-100 Introduction to Incident Command System
FEMA Course IS-700 National Incident Management System (NIMS)

The FEMA courses are optional but the Pet First Aid (either the online version or any pet first aid course that certifies you) is required. If you haven't yet taken the Pet First Aid course when you attend the MAR Technician seminar, MPP will withhold your certification until you've submitted proof that you are trained in Pet First Aid.

We strongly recommend (but we do not require) that you complete the National Association of Search and Rescue's ISAR course offered in various locations throughout the USA. Another option is to purchase the ISAR book (listed below) from NASAR and then challenge the ISAR written examination (without actually attending their course). A third option is that you volunteer with your local search-and-rescue (SAR) team where you'll learn how to search for lost people. Doing so will help you gain valuable crossover experience that will prepare you to search for lost pets. In addition to the above training courses you should read the following books. All of these books contain elements that will be covered in the MAR Technician Certification course:

BLINK by Malcolm Gladwell*
THE LOST PET CHRONICLES by Kat Albrecht*
DOG DETECTIVES: Train Your Dog to Find Lost Pets by Kat Albrecht*
"CORMAC: The Tale of a Dog Gone Missing by Sonny Brewer*
ANIMALS IN TRANSLATION by Temple Grandin
SCENT and the SCENTING DOG by William Syrotuck
READY to SERVE, READY to SAVE! Strategies of Real-Life Search & Rescue Missions by Susan Bulanda
A PRACTICAL GUIDE TO TRAINING AND WORKING THE TRAILING DOG by John Lutenberg and Linda Porter
ONE AT A TIME: A Week in an American Animal Shelter by Diane Leigh and Marilee Geyer
SHERLOCK BONES by John Keane
THE HIDDEN LIFE OF DOGS by Elizabeth Marshall Thomas
FOR THE LOVE OF A DOG by Patricia McConnell, Ph.D.
INTRODUCTION TO SEARCH & RESCUE (ISAR) by NASAR (National Association of Search and Rescue) Available only through the NASAR bookstore.
FORENSIC INVESTIGATION of ANIMAL CRUELTY by Leslie Sinclair, DVM (etc.)

* The first four books are required reading for those taking either the MAR Technician course or the Lost Pet First Responder seminar.

*Our pages are copyright-protected. To share our lost pet information with others, please link or refer people to our website. To request permission to reprint material from our site, please contact us.