Anne Wills is the founder and president of the nonprofits Dogs Finding Dogs — which helps people find lost pets using trained dogs — and Dogs Finding Drugs, helping business owners and parents locate drugs in their offices or homes.
How did you come up with the idea for the nonprofits?
I purchased my current dog, Heidi, as a puppy and it was very apparent that she needed a job because she was very energetic, smart and easy to train. We went to a training facility where police officers go to get additional training for their dogs. The officers mentioned that they couldn’t handle the number of calls they receive regarding lost pets, so the idea gravitated from there. And I have always wanted to do all different forms of detection to help people.
How much demand is there for your services?
I started Dogs Finding Dogs — the search-and-rescue effort — about two and a half years ago and it has really taken off. We probably help roughly 300 people a year find their pets, and we’ve brought home about a total of 500 missing pets. We have also helped hundreds of people over the phone, giving them tips for finding their pets that we have learned over the years. We just launched Dogs Finding Drugs, but we have already received a number of inquiries.
How many dogs are in your fleet?
Dogs Finding Dogs has about 12 or 13 dogs, and Dogs Finding Drugs has about five dogs who can detect firearms and explosives, in addition to drugs. All the dogs live with their own certified handler.
What happens if drugs are found?
We’ve married our program with Mike Gimbel, Baltimore’s former drug czar, and he’s helping us to educate customers if drugs are found. After the detection is done, he will be going in and doing workshops for businesses, providing information on treatment centers and counseling. We offer a full service. We don’t want to just go out, smell the drugs, and then say, “See ya.”
Can customers face legal action if drugs are found?
Law enforcement is not involved. We do not take possession of drugs and we don’t call police. Instead, we strongly recommend they destroy the drugs and call the police.
– Hayley Peterson
