Cadaver dogs search home of missing baby's father

Volunteer explains how process works

SAN ANTONIO – San Antonio police are doing everything possible to find an 8-month-old baby who disappeared Friday, officers said Tuesday.

Cadaver dogs have been used to search a West Side property belonging to 34-year-old Chris Davila, the father of the missing baby, King Jay Davila, investigators confirmed Monday.

A volunteer with an organization that provided assistance in the search explained how the process works.

"As a team, we train twice a week, but the handlers are out there almost every day training their canine," said Lee Wingert, a public information officer with Alamo Area Search and Rescue, a nonprofit organization made up of about 30 volunteers and about 14 trained dogs, including German shepherds, bloodhounds and Labradors.

The canines are used to provide law enforcement agencies assistance with various types of search and recovery efforts on land and water.

"They are thoroughly trained to find a multitude of victims," Wingert said.

Dogs' sense of smell is about 40 times stronger than humans', according to Alamo Area Search and Rescue.

"Bodies emit gasses (that) come up through the earth and dogs can sense that," Wingert said.

Investigators hope to find the infant soon.


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