Thermal Deer & Wildlife Recovery
Lost a shot? Our thermal drone spots a deer’s heat signature through brush and darkness in minutes — not hours. 187 of 215 recovered and counting.
Learn MoreMemphis, Missouri · FAA Part 107 Licensed · Statewide & Beyond
Thermal deer & wildlife recovery, herd analysis, search & rescue for people and pets, high-resolution mapping, and aerial photo/video — when it has to be found, we find it.
What We Do
Five core services, all flown by an FAA Part 107 licensed pilot with military-grade thermal equipment.
Lost a shot? Our thermal drone spots a deer’s heat signature through brush and darkness in minutes — not hours. 187 of 215 recovered and counting.
Learn MoreFull-property thermal flyovers to count, age-class, and map your herd — bucks, does, and fawns pinned on an aerial map so you can manage your ground with real data. Over 22,000 acres surveyed to date.
Learn MoreA missing loved one, a runaway dog, or livestock out of the fence is a race against time. Our thermal drone covers acres of field, timber, and creek bottom in the time it takes a ground crew to cover a few hundred yards.
Learn MoreOrthomosaic maps and aerial surveys for land management, timber assessment, and property planning — delivered fast and ready to act on.
Learn MoreCinematic 4K aerial footage and photography for real estate, events, land listings, and marketing — delivered fast in the format you need.
Learn MoreThe Difference
The Process
From your first call to results in hand — here’s what to expect.
Reach out with your situation — shot placement and last known location for a recovery, or your property and goals for a herd analysis or mapping job.
Our FAA Part 107 licensed pilot arrives with thermal-equipped equipment, ready day or night, rain or shine.
We scan the field, timber, or property from above — spotting heat signatures or capturing high-resolution imagery in minutes, not hours.
We guide you straight to the recovery site, or hand over your herd analysis map and data — with support after the flight if you need it.
Reviews
“Amazing, simply amazing. Everything is great quality.”
Shannon Kilpin Emmerich · Facebook“Unbelievably fast response time, extremely helpful and found my deer in 2 min!!”
Verified client · Drone Deer Recovery“Had a great experience locating some cows that got out. Kurtis came out and found them in 4 minutes! Extremely professional and enjoyable to work with!”
Bryce Burr · Facebook“Great experience! Called on short notice and Kurtis was able to get onsite within hours. Found what we were looking for quickly and efficiently. Thanks Kurtis!”
Verified client · Drone Deer Recovery“2 recoveries, both found within 5 minutes, 1 of which we searched for hours for on foot. Wish we’d made the call sooner. Can’t recommend enough!”
Damion Gustman · Facebook“Found our buck in no time. Great communication throughout & professional customer service.”
Verified client · Drone Deer Recovery“Kurtis was able to come and locate a deer 36 hours after the shot, with snow on top of him. I had my doubts, but I can tell you — he knows what he is doing.”
Bryan Atkins · Facebook“Excellent service. Helped me find the wounded buck. Learned a lot about deer tracking.”
Verified client · Drone Deer Recovery“Amazing to work with and will go above and beyond to find your deer.”
Anthony Klenke · Facebook“Kurtis goes the extra mile! If you need drone service he’s the guy.”
Verified client · Drone Deer Recovery“Kurtis is the best out there! Quick response, reliable, very knowledgeable on what he does with these drones. If you need a deer found, a population survey, or just curious what’s roaming your property — give Recon1 a call!”
Dustin Dean · Facebook“I called Kurtis about 10 minutes after I shot my deer once we lost the blood trail. He answered right away, kept me in the loop the whole time, and found it. I’ll be recommending him to everybody!”
Verified client · Drone Deer Recovery“Definitely recommend these guys 100%. Pretty amazing technology to see in action. Even without a rescue or recovery we can find closure — this drone could spot anything from a big buck to a small rabbit or a kitten sleeping next to a stump in the woods.”
Stacey Huss-Jones · Facebook“I have closure and peace of mind about my Daisy Mae (English bulldog). She got out while we were packing to move and never returned. With his thorough search and accuracy on every spot we thought she could be, he checked it all and zoomed in on every animal around her size. I highly recommend them for every search you need!”
Morgun Jones · Facebook“Our dog Echo went missing on one of the scariest nights — we walked over 6 miles through woods and cornfields until we ran out of daylight. Recon1 drove an entire hour out to help total strangers, with his wife and family alongside him. Their thermal drone searched areas we couldn’t safely reach. Their dedication and compassion are unmatched.”
Celest Cantrell · Facebook“I highly recommend giving him a call if you can’t find your deer. It’s an amazing service and was so neat to watch him find it. Great service and would definitely use them again!”
Facebook review“I made a poor shot on a nice buck and called Recon1 — they were there in a couple hours. After a long search, we found him still on his feet with a non-lethal wound, so we could put closure to the hunt. Bittersweet, but knowing there isn’t a dead deer out there never to be found is a huge relief. I cannot say enough about the drive and determination Recon1 had to help me find this deer.”
C Fish Swim · Facebook“I shoulder shot a good buck and the blood trail petered out fast. Kurtis came out and searched for almost an hour, decided the sun was too bright, then came back that evening and found him a half mile away. The deer moved on us 3 nights in a row, and Kurtis came back out each evening to relocate him. He could have easily taken my money and said the deer wasn’t dead — instead he made it his mission. Top notch guy, highly recommend!”
Keith Paszkiewicz · FacebookWe’ve featured a few of our favorites here — every five-star review is visible once you click through above.
About Recon1
Recon1 LLC Drone Services is based in Memphis, Missouri and has spent the last three years putting thermal drone technology to work for hunters, landowners, and families across Central, West Central, East Central, Northwest, and Northeast Missouri — from recovering a hard-hit buck at 2am to mapping thousands of acres of timber and helping search for a missing pet.
Every flight is operated by an FAA Part 107 licensed pilot and covered under insurance through BWI Aviation. If it's in Missouri, we'll come to you — and we're willing to travel beyond state lines for the right job.
FAQs
Common questions about drone deer recovery, herd analysis, and how Recon1 works.
We fly a thermal-imaging drone over the last known area and surrounding cover. Body heat shows up clearly against the cooler ground and brush, so we can spot a downed deer from the air in minutes — even in total darkness or heavy timber — then guide you straight to it. Don't assume it's too late to call, either: in our experience, deer have been successfully recovered as long as four days after the shot.
We've recovered 187 of 215 deer we've been called out for — an 87% success rate. The other 13% weren't a case of our equipment or search coming up short — in nearly every one of those cases, the deer simply wasn't hit fatally, meaning there was no downed animal in the search area to find. Recovery odds are highest the sooner we're called, so reach out as soon as you know you need help.
Yes — we run full-property thermal flyovers to count and age-class your herd, pinning bucks, does, and fawns on an aerial map. Along with your buck-to-doe ratio, we also track turkey numbers and predator activity on the property, so you get a full picture of what's using your ground, not just deer counts. We've surveyed over 22,000 acres for herd analysis to date.
We're based in Memphis, Missouri and regularly cover Central, West Central, East Central, Northwest, and Northeast Missouri — and we're willing to travel statewide and beyond for the right job.
Yes — every flight is operated under an FAA Part 107 remote pilot license and covered under insurance through BWI Aviation.
Call or text us as soon as you can — (660) 223-8773. Try to note your last visual on the deer and avoid pushing too far into the area on foot; the less it's been disturbed, the easier it is for us to locate from the air.
Get In Touch
Call or text first — nights and weekends included. We respond fast because recoveries are time-sensitive.
Based in Memphis, MO · Serving Central, West Central, East Central, Northwest & Northeast Missouri — statewide and beyond upon request.