What Thermal Cameras Can and Cannot Detect

Thermal imaging is a valuable search tool, but it is not X-ray vision, and it does not reveal everything within the search area. Understanding these limitations helps owners maintain realistic expectations and explains why a pet may remain undetected even when the drone searches nearby.

What Clients Can Expect During a Thermal Drone Search

After arriving at the search location, Sight Hawk Drone reviews the available information, establishes a safe launch area, and confirms the initial search priorities with the owner. The flight plan may change as the search progresses based on terrain, possible heat signatures, new sightings, or other information received on scene.

Can a Thermal Drone Search Guarantee Recovery?

No drone operator or pet-recovery professional can guarantee that a missing animal will be located or safely recovered. A pet may be outside the selected search area, concealed beneath solid cover, hidden by vegetation, inside a building, or moving between locations while the search is underway. A thermal drone improves the ability to examine large or difficult areas from the air, but it cannot track a microchip, search through satellites, or automatically distinguish the missing pet from every other animal. Treat any person or company promising a guaranteed location with caution.

Is a Thermal Drone Search Right for Your Missing Pet?

A thermal drone search is most useful when there is a reliable last-known location or recent credible sighting, an identifiable search area, and terrain that provides the camera with reasonable visibility. Open fields, wooded corridors, drainage areas, parks, rural property, and connected neighborhood spaces may all be appropriate depending on local conditions. A broad drone search may be less useful when there is no reliable location information, the suspected area consists primarily of buildings and other solid cover, or the search is being redirected by an old or unconfirmed sighting. A free initial telephone consultation can help determine whether a drone search is appropriate or whether another recovery step should come first.

Thermal Drone Search for Missing Pets: How It Works

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