A new proof-of-concept study shows that highly trained dogs can sniff off coronavirus on human perspiration from 177 patients from a hospital in Beirut, Lebanon as well as four hospitals in Paris, France. If this study works well, then dogs could not only protect humans from bombs or any drugs, but also from this deadly virus.
Since canine noses much higher scent receptors at 300 million, compared with humans' 5 million or 6 million, the dogs could detect even tiny concentrations of odor that are invisible to human senses. This is also the reason sniffer dogs can detect drugs, firearms, and explosives. Meanwhile, scientists were also able to train dogs to detect some types of cancers and malaria, although they are not traditionally used for this purpose.
Now, some countries already started utilizing these dogs' special skillsets to further strengthen their viral detection. For instance, police dogs were trained to sniff out coronavirus on people in Chile while in September, a pack of COVID sniffing dogs in Finland was designated at Helsinki Airport.
Meanwhile, the United Kingdom government already has allotted over $600,000 for a team of scientists from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine who is researching on whether these specially-trained sniffer dogs in airports could detect coronavirus in travelers before any symptoms appear.
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Written by CJ Robles
