How drones are revolutionizing the search for lost pets
One Southern California city is using a $17,000 drone that utilizes lasers and thermal imaging to pinpoint animal heat signatures over large areas.
August 29, 2026 / 9:58 PM EDT / CBS News
On a freeway in Southern California's Orange County, the chase is on.
But authorities aren't tracking a suspect. They're trying to save a lost dog. A small terrier, to be exact.
A drone overhead spots him in the carpool lane and guides in ground units. The entire rescue took just minutes.
"This time we were able to just put the drone up and coordinate via the radio and just say, this is where it's at," Kyle Werner, an animal control officer for the city of Mission Viejo, told CBS News.
Werner said lost pet searches used to take days or weeks.