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To wrap up National Criminal Justice Month in March, students in the Criminology and Criminal Justice Department got a visit from Splash, the country’s first search and rescue otter.

Splash, an Asian small-clawed otter, is employed by Peace River K9 Search and Rescue in Charlotte County. The organization works with law enforcement agencies and families in the recovery of lost, missing and abducted people.

Mike Hadsell, a forensic diver and Splash’s owner, talked in Reeves Theatre on campus on Tuesday, teaching students about his work and how he uses otters.

Splash uses scent to help with recovery efforts, using what Hadsell called the “bubble technique.” As Splash searches, he blows bubbles, and the bubbles collect scents from the water. Splash then eats his own bubbles, and he can taste the scent molecules. If he detects a scent that matches what he’s supposed to find, he alerts Hadsell by tapping on his dive mask and leads him to the source.

Since Splash started working in March of last year, he has been deployed over 30 times in search and rescue operations and has assisted in eight recoveries.

Rhissa Briones Robinson, assistant professor of criminology and criminal justice and organizer of National Criminal Justice Month events on campus, said learning from Hadsell and Splash helps students to realize the “human side of this work.”

“There is a real person doing difficult, emotional and sometimes dangerous work to help strangers. That leaves an impression you don’t get from a textbook.”

Terah Smith, a sophomore, said she loved seeing how animals are incorporated into search and rescue.

Splash stayed in his carrier through most of Hadsell’s talk, but afterward, Hadsell lured him out to meet the students. He was a little cranky, making whining noises, having been woken from a nap.

He is “so cute, so adorable,” Smith said.

Hadsell pointed out that Splash is not always so endearing.��Recently, Hadsell said, Splash has been skipping the alerting phase and bringing what he’s found right to Hadsell, so he can receive a treat faster.

“The medical examiner doesn’t like it,” Hadsell said, “so we’re trying to get him to stop doing that,” as it messes with potential crime scenes.

Splash likes and accepts tilapia, cucumber, grapes, boiled eggs, and has a particular affinity for farm-raised salmon, which Hadsell remarked is $17 per pound.

Otters eat four times a day, due to their fast metabolism, and if they don’t, they can become hypothermic.

“I have four training opportunities a day,” Hadsell said. “No worky, no foody.”