Guidelines for Admissibility of Evidence Recovered by Working Dogs

These Guidelines will ensure the success of using working dogs (detection, tracking and apprehension/attack) at trial and assuring that the success of their recoveries is translated into convictions and a consequent reduction in wildlife crime. Many countries do not have specific legislation on how such evidence should be used but courts in many countries recognize that a dog has the ability to discriminate scent. Canine evidence is relevant and admissible in court if it makes the existence of any fact more probable or less probable than it would have been without that evidence.