Cairn Canine Detection exists to advance the thoughtful, ethical, and professionally grounded use of Historical Human Remains Detection Dogs in service to archaeology, historical preservation, and investigative search.
We work at the intersection of canine detection, archaeology, cultural resource management, and historical inquiry. We support projects involving unmarked graves, forgotten cemeteries, institutional burial grounds, and other contexts in which very old human remains may be present. Our work emphasizes non-invasive search methods, cultural sensitivity, and careful collaboration with the professionals and communities responsible for a site.
We believe detection dogs are most effective when integrated into a broader investigative framework that may include archival research, oral history, geophysical survey, archaeological testing, landscape interpretation, and soil or environmental analysis. We do not present Historical Human Remains Detection Dogs as a replacement for archaeological method. Rather, we view them as one specialized tool within a larger decision-making process.
*Respect for the dead and for descendant communities.
*Respect for Tribal authority, cultural protocols, and community-led decision-making.
*Professionalism in training, deployment, mapping, and documentation.
*Honesty about what detection dogs can and cannot tell us.
*Commitment to the continued development of standards in a rapidly evolving field.