Dogs are being trained to sniff out Coronavirus.
Medical Detection Dogs are training the animals to smell samples of the virus, in the belief that each disease triggers a distinct odor, which dogs will pick up with their sharp sense of smell.
The charity, based in Milton Keynes, has previously worked with its dogs to detect cancers and Parkinson’s disease within patients.
Claire Guest, Founder, and Chief Executive of Medical Detection Dogs, thinks the dogs will allow them to screen hundreds of people rapidly, thereby allowing them to know very quickly who needs to be tested and who needs to be isolated.
According to a report on Sky News, the organization leading the efforts is working with the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM) and Durham University to ensure the dogs’ capabilities are useful in the fight against the spread of the novel Coronavirus.
Six dogs have been earmarked for the training; Norman, Digby, Storm, Star, Jasper and Asher. And the charity claims that with some training, their noses may be able to detect Coronavirus in as little as six to eight weeks.
According to a report on The Telegraph, “more than 425,000 people in the UK have been tested for coronavirus” leading the government to put in place a strict lockdown in an attempt to deal with the pandemic.”
The current numbers within the United Kingdom confirm more than 130,000 confirmed cases who tested positive for COVID-19, with about 18,000 deaths according to the Worldometer.
