The tracker dogs

[Eleanor]

The one where Eddie alerted to Cuddle Cat.

No pink blanket ever seen there.

[Robittybob1]

No pink blanket ever seen there.

I'll find it again.  Do you think the McCanns never got it back?  Is that why you are so sure "no pink blanket ever seen there".

[G-Unit]

How can anyone offer a solution? The direction taken by the dogs is a fact. What we don't know is if they were following a track laid by Madeleine on the evening of 3rd May. She'd been walking around that area for 5 days, after all.

According to her father the family developed a routine whereby the mother and children often entered and exited the apartment by the patio doors. He entered and exited by the front door opening and locking the patio doors for the others.

He also says that one day they all left by the front door and the three children ran away, following the route taken by the dogs.

MADELEINE left [went] running to the left to the extreme opposite of the residential blocks where they were lodged, playing with the twins. That they had gone down to the furthest point away from those blocks, not knowing exactly how, the three children got into the gardens at the rear [of the blocks]. Then they followed the inside corridor [pathway] at the rear, next to the hedges [fences] up to the street that led to the secondary reception.
http://www.mccannpjfiles.co.uk/PJ/GERRY-MCCANN-10MAY.htm

Were the parents still in the apartment then, allowing the children to have a start? Or did the parents just follow them without trying to stop them? Were they so far ahead that the parents didn't see how they got into the gardens? What I do know is that I can catch a two year old quite quickly, and I'm no runner. I think this is the only witness who mentions this running away and it was mentioned on 10th May, after the three dogs followed this track a total of five times.

[sadie]

I have made two suggestions, but seems you have dismissed them.

I suggest that the dogs were following either:

1)  The scent of Madeleines footsteps earlier that day or on another day.  Her footsteps would have a stronger scent than the air scent from her being carried

2)  The towel / blanket was handled by a sweaty abductor / lifter of Madeleine, and his/her scent was stronger than Madeleines scent.  The dogs did not follow Madeleines scent per se, but the sweaty smell of fear from the abductor/lifter, possibly on his way to 5A rather than from 5A. 

3)  or ... Madeleine had been passed, from lifter to Tannerman, over the wall immediately in front of 5A ... and the dogs followed the main scent at nose height, along the walled walkway.   This scent was of the lifter + a twee whiff of Madeleine

[Robittybob1]

I have made two suggestions, but seems you have dismissed them.

I suggest that the dogs were following either:

1)  The scent of Madeleines footsteps earlier that day or on another day.  Her footsteps would have a stronger scent than the air scent from her being carried

2)  The towel / blanket was handled by a sweaty abductor / lifter of Madeleine, and his/her scent was stronger than Madeleines scent.  The dogs did not follow Madeleines scent per se, but the sweaty smell of fear from the abductor/lifter, possibly on his way to 5A rather than from 5A. 

3)  or ... Madeleine had been passed, from lifter to Tannerman, over the wall immediately in front of 5A ... and the dogs followed the main scent at nose height, along the walled walkway.   This scent was of the lifter + a twee whiff of Madeleine

You were right I must have missed them.  All possible.

[mercury]

I have made two suggestions, but seems you have dismissed them.

I suggest that the dogs were following either:

1)  The scent of Madeleines footsteps earlier that day or on another day.  Her footsteps would have a stronger scent than the air scent from her being carried

2)  The towel / blanket was handled by a sweaty abductor / lifter of Madeleine, and his/her scent was stronger than Madeleines scent.  The dogs did not follow Madeleines scent per se, but the sweaty smell of fear from the abductor/lifter, possibly on his way to 5A rather than from 5A. 

3)  or ... Madeleine had been passed, from lifter to Tannerman, over the wall immediately in front of 5A ... and the dogs followed the main scent at nose height, along the walled walkway.   This scent was of the lifter + a twee whiff of Madeleine

so does that mean the abductor was sweaty and used madleenes bath towel to wipe his hands on? And then wiped them on her blanket? As well?

[sadie]

so does that mean the abductor was sweaty and used madleenes bath towel to wipe his hands on? And then wiped them on her blanket? As well?

Madeleines cuddle blanket was removed from her arms, presumably by the lifter, so his sweaty smell would be on it.

Madeleines towel may well have been on the bottom of the bed and could have been used to wipe his hands or he might have done a simple thing like accidentally knock it to the floor and pick it up out of the way. 

We just dont know ... and need to be open minded about the situation.

[mercury]

Madeleines cuddle blanket was removed from her arms, presumably by the lifter, so his sweaty smell would be on it.

Madeleines towel may well have been on the bottom of the bed and could have been used to wipe his hands or he might have done a simple thing like accidentally knock it to the floor and pick it up out of the way. 

We just dont know ... and need to be open minded about the situation.

When was it in her arms? Gerry says it was on top of her head at 9.10 as it was when they out her go sleep

All the rest is speculation, we just dont want speculation without evidence sadie.

[sadie]

When was it in her arms? Gerry says it was on top of her head at 9.10 as it was when they out her go sleep

All the rest is speculation, we just dont want speculation without evidence sadie.

An open mind is what you need, mercury, to think around things a bit.

Childrens favourite blankets are for cuddling, usually by their faces, in my experience

[mercury]

An open mind is what you need, mercury, to think around things a bit.

Childrens favourite blankets are for cuddling, usually by their faces, in my experience

Doesnt really matter what you thnk
The parents statement say they left it on top of her head and thats where they found it and of course we have been suckered in by robbity whose question was where did the blanket end up which has zero to do with its use in the dog search, yawn

[Robittybob1]

Were there? After 11pm on 4th?

This is something I'll have to keep an eye open for.  but nothing so far. 

[Robittybob1]

I'm quite sure there would have been staff there at all times so soon after the disappearance to open locked doors etc.  If the GNR didn't search an area obviously they saw no point in doing so.

They ended up searching miles around PdL and failed to search a building the dogs tracked to.  That seems a fatal flaw in their thinking IMO.

[G-Unit]

I have made two suggestions, but seems you have dismissed them.

I suggest that the dogs were following either:

1)  The scent of Madeleines footsteps earlier that day or on another day.  Her footsteps would have a stronger scent than the air scent from her being carried

2)  The towel / blanket was handled by a sweaty abductor / lifter of Madeleine, and his/her scent was stronger than Madeleines scent.  The dogs did not follow Madeleines scent per se, but the sweaty smell of fear from the abductor/lifter, possibly on his way to 5A rather than from 5A. 

3)  or ... Madeleine had been passed, from lifter to Tannerman, over the wall immediately in front of 5A ... and the dogs followed the main scent at nose height, along the walled walkway.   This scent was of the lifter + a twee whiff of Madeleine

You now need a theory to explain what your sweaty abductor/lifter was doing upstairs in blocks 4 and 5 at and near apartments connected with the Paynes and the McCanns.

The tracker dogs were taken into apartment blocks 4 and 5 on 8th May. They were given the towel to sniff and;

It is certain...that the dog signalled next to apartments 5J, 5H, and 4G. He showed great interest in sniffing these doors and the immediate areas.

He did not show any interest or even approach other apartments.
http://www.mccannpjfiles.co.uk/PJ/ANTONIO_SILVA.htm

[Robittybob1]

You now need a theory to explain what your sweaty abductor/lifter was doing upstairs in blocks 4 and 5 at and near apartments connected with the Paynes and the McCanns.

The tracker dogs were taken into apartment blocks 4 and 5 on 8th May. They were given the towel to sniff and;

It is certain...that the dog signalled next to apartments 5J, 5H, and 4G. He showed great interest in sniffing these doors and the immediate areas.

He did not show any interest or even approach other apartments.
http://www.mccannpjfiles.co.uk/PJ/ANTONIO_SILVA.htm

If you go to the summary statement of that report:

The dog did not demonstrate to its owner that it had found the scent it was searching for.

it sounds like any indication was not intense enough to be sure.

[G-Unit]

If you go to the summary statement of that report:it sounds like any indication was not intense enough to be sure.

I think you're quoting from a different statement than the one I linked to. However, the dogs didn't, as far as I know, provide a definite indication of having found the scent during any of their tracking exercises, inside or outside.

Therefore the probability that they smelled either Madeleine or an abductor/lifter inside the blocks is equal to the probability that they followed the same scent outside.

If they were detecting the same scent the question is why they showed interest in 4G. We have been told that Madeleine went along the path and that she went upstairs to 5H. She was never in block 4, as far as we know. Her belongings were moved from 5A to 4G, probably mixed up with the belongings of other family members, but she was never physically present.

There is also no reason why any abductor/lifter would be upstairs in either block. Any reasons given would be pure guesswork. Even then, reasons for being near 5H, 5J and 4G and nowhere else would have to be found.

There is one person who we know handled the blanket and the towel, walked the path and went to 5H and 4G. Therefore the possibility that the dogs followed their scent has to be included. In that case the dogs weren't tracking Madeleine or a mythical abductor/lifter, they were tracking Kate McCann's scent, which was legitimately present in all the locations, according to her husband.