Dogs Scenting Covid-19

Anyone who works with scent detection dogs will know that they are more than capable of identifying whatever chemical elements are specific to Covid-19.

Having trained dogs to differentiate between low and high blood sugar levels, as well as to detect and indicate 30 year old blood spots on a crime scene, I knew that it was perfectly feasible but wondered how they would deploy the dogs in an airport.

So many people coming off planes at any one time throughout the day and night! One of the key essentials in training scent detection is that the handler needs great skill in “reading” the signals the dog gives. Dogs are individuals and will differ in the way in which they notice an odour and then process it and finally indicate to the handler what they have found.

One of my Rottweilers would search very calmly and methodically until she found the correct odour. Then her tail would start wagging slowly - increasing as she honed in on the scent source until she was poised on the source, standing very still but tail wagging frantically!

Whereas another of my dogs would search very enthusiastically with tail wagging until he noticed the odour and then he would go into “Zen” mode - slowing right down until he reached the source. As soon as his tail stopped moving, I knew he was right on the spot.

And other dogs will offer even tinier changes that a handler must be alert to notice, such as a change in breathing, heart rate or even a flick of the ears or a momentary pause in movement. This is the one thing I notice every time I run a scent detection and indication training course - the dogs can be very accurate but many of the handlers aren’t and then they blame the dogs for any missed finds!

We have to use videos and slow the action down so that the handlers can train themselves to be better at supporting their dogs. When I was assisting at a Police Detection Dog Handler annual reassessment day, I saw very experienced handlers make simple mistakes because they were relying on the dog to “do the job” and weren’t paying attention at every step the dog took. They were assuming that the dog would “breeze through” the assessment, but forgot that they are an essential part of the equation. When the dog veered off course, they forgot to retrace a few steps and thoroughly search the area that the dog had not yet covered but continued forward, thus missing the hidden odour source.

The handlers were shocked when their “brilliant, experienced dog” missed the find. It is a team effort - dog and handler working out the problem together, not just a matter of training dogs to detect the scent and then placing them in a work situation.

Dogs ARE brilliant but they need the human input and perspective to do the best job. So when I see that dogs are to be utilized in airports or other crowded places to detect COVID-19, I wonder how they are going to ensure that the handlers are good enough for the job!