At Vantage Point Drones we are compassionate towards families who have lost pets. We try our best at offering semi-affordable rates for pet searches. Keep in mind our search equipment is very expensive as well as operating costs/insurance/fuel/time etc. Our current rates for searches are:

$250 for 2 hours of search time.

$75 an hour for any addtional hours. 

Clients also may incur a $75 drive fee for searches over 45mins away from Kinsman Ohio. 

Transparency is essential at Vantage Point Drones,  during the summer time, it is extremely difficult for us to see through thick dense woods because of the leaves grown on the trees.  Normally in the winter this is a non issue.  However, the majority of our search areas tend to be wooded areas.  The summer heat is also a concern when using thermal imaging.  We recommend only searching late at night or very very early in the morning at first light. 

So, the rule of thumb for summer searches, is that yes we will conduct them if requested, but keep in mind that there is significant risk that the search will not be successful.  However, there is always a possibility that we will catch your pet out in an opening, near a residence, in an open field etc etc.   

 When requesting a search during the summer,  make sure you understand the risks.  

RIGHT AWAY ! 

Dogs can travel miles over a very short period of time making finding them very difficult.

The longer your pet is missing, the longer they are exposed to real life dangers such as traffic hazards, predators, and weather conditions. 

Make the drone your first call, not your last resort. 

The way the process works, first we like to speak to our clients over the phone to gather as much intel as possible, after this process we typically tell our clients how we feel about the situation and conducting a search.  

Once a search is agreed upon, we will arive on scene and process payment in person.   

Next a pilot from Vantage Point Drone Services will go over the projected search plan, and the planned search area.  

From here we use thermal imaging drones to identify heat sources that could potentially be your lost pet, once we have identified a suspected heat source, we observe the object with a 200x zoom camera that is also fixed onto the drone, giving us a colored image of what exactly the heat source is.  These cameras are able to function during the daytime and nightime. 

You will be able to spectate this entire process and see in real time what your pilot is seeing on their remote. 

In the event that we locate your missing pet, you will recieve map coordinates to your cell phone via apple maps, and the pilot will assist you over the phone, to put you in position to rescue your pet.  It is important that the owner of the pet makes the rescue attempt as the dog is most comfortable with this person. 

In the event your pet takes off or is "skiddish" , the pilot will follow the dog via the drone, we will likely make a additional attempt at another rescue. If all rescue attempts fail, we will discuss our add on trapping service if interested. 

There are so many variables to consider when looking for lost pets.  Was your pet picked up by someone? Did your dog run miles away from home? etc etc.

We attempt to evaluate each missing pet case, and tell our client the estimated "odds of success" on a case by case basis

In 2023-24 we found roughly 30 missing pets/livestock. 

In 2 hours time, we typically cover no less than a half mile radius.  The search area will depend on terrain features in the search area. Sometimes we cover larger than a half mile radius, but typically never less than. 

More distance can be covered if the client agrees to more search time. 

Our Drones are equipped with thermal imaging and a large spotlight.

Short Asnwer: YES ! We can fly daytime or night time. 

Yes we can search for cats,  however by nature, cats tend to be more difficult.  Cats behave differently compared to dogs and it is common practice for cats to hang out and lounge under porches, vehicles, and other solid objects, making them not visible to the drone. 

We recommend performing cat searches during sunset/night time as cats tend to become more mobile during that time. 

While it is common for some to suspect that drones will scare away a pet, they are only partially correct. While some lower end drones,  may frighten dogs or cats, due to high pitch sounds from the rotors &  dangerously low flight altitudes our drones are capable of locating lost pets at great heights, which result in the pet being 100% unfazed. 

In all cases of pet search and rescue, we have never spooked a lost animal with our drone.  They will no scare away your animal. Check out some of our content on social media to see for yourself. 

Depending on the quality of thermal drone, they can range anywhere from $7000 to $10,000. 

All together we have about $14,000 in overall equipment. 

If you are interested in a career in pet search and rescue, feel free to reach out to us for sales.  We work directly with licensed Dji Enterprise dealers and can get you the equipment you need.  

When purchasing your drone through our colleagues, you will receive 1 on 1 coaching in person or via zoom if you are from out of state.