NEWTON COUNTY, GA — The Newton County Sheriff’s Office is working to help families who care for loved ones prone to wandering by offering free scent preservation kits.

The program is made possible through a federal grant and is designed to help locate people with autism, dementia, Alzheimer’s, or others who may wander away from home. The sheriff’s office has also used the grant to purchase trained scent-tracking K-9s.

Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Caitlyn Jett says the kits allow families to collect and store a person’s scent so K-9s can begin tracking immediately if that person goes missing.

“Once you get the scent, you put it back into the container and seal it, and it’s good for 10 years once it’s sealed,” Jett said.

The scent is collected using a cloth included in the kit and should be stored in an easy-to-access location.

“Such as on top of a fridge so when our K-9 dogs come out, they can get it, let the K-9s get the scent, and then start tracking,” Jett said.

The sheriff’s office says the goal is to help families get a faster response when a loved one wanders off. The kits are provided at no cost and are funded entirely through a federal grant.

“This grant allowed us to purchase K-9 scent dogs and the scent preservation kit that we can provide to individuals in the community for free,” Jett said.

Officials say the preserved scent can be used for up to 10 years, giving deputies and K-9s the ability to quickly begin a search and help bring loved ones home safely.

WSB Radio’s Michelle Wright contributed to this story.