Dogs are being trained to find the coronavirus by smelling people in public spaces

Canela LópezJul 24, 2020, 19:32 IST

The Carabineros Dog Training School is training four dogs only to detect COVID-19 by placing a patch on a person's armpit with possible symptoms for two hours and then taking it to the dog to detect the virus in Chile.Marcelo Hernandez / Getty Images

Police dogs across the world are being trained to detect the novel coronavirus by smelling people.
Sniffer dogs could be used to minimize the spread of the coronavirus in public spaces.
Sniffer dogs have been able to successfully detect other diseases like cancer and tuberculosis.

From France to the United Kingdom to Chile, police and cognitive-behavioral researchers are racing to see if dogs can smell people infected with the coronavirus in crowded public spaces.

"It seems that the same sort of process that occurs in cancer detection dogs, or bomb detection dogs, or any other type of detecting dog may apply here too," Dr. Brian Hare, author of "Survival of the Friendliest" and professor of Evolutionary Anthropology, and Psychology, and Neuroscience at Duke University, told Insider.

Here's the science behind how bio-detector dogs sniff out diseases and get trained to keep us safe.

While there is no evidence that conclusively proves sniffer dogs can detect the coronavirus, dogs have long been used to sniff out bombs, cancer, and even malaria.

Sergeant Fuentealba (not in frame) works with the dog called Clifford sniffing a box with a sample at Carabineros de Chile Dog Training School in the Parque Metropolitano on July 17, 2020 in Santiago, Chile. Marcelo Hernandez / Getty Images

"There are lots of species that actually have better noses in dogs, but what dogs have is this pairing of a great nose and communicative ability," Hare told Insider.

A firefighter officer trains his dog to find a piece of tissue with infected by the COVID-19 (the novel coronavirus) during a training, on April 30, 2020, in Ajaccio, on the French Mediterranean island of Corsica. PASCAL POCHARD-CASABIANCA / Getty Images

Dogs have an olfactory epithelium, responsible for detecting smells, that is 30% larger than that of a human — making their noses especially powerful.

A Malinois dogs looks on as it is taught to find a piece of fabric infected with the COVID-19 (the novel coronavirus) bacteria during a training session on the outskirts of Paris OEL SAGET / Getty Images

"The way that dogs are able to detect the virus or cancer, or even a bomb, is that there's something associated with a stain they're searching for that they can smell," Hare told Insider.

Dogs look on as they wait with their owner to take part in a training session to learn to detect the COVID-19. PASCAL POCHARD-CASABIANCA / Getty Images

"The way that dogs are able to detect the virus or cancer, or even a bomb, is that there's something associated with a stain they're searching for that they can smell," Hare told Insider.

Sniffer dogs are trained by detecting something associated with illnesses or drugs such as sweat or chemicals and alerting their trainer by sitting or barking.

"Freya" correctly detects a sample of malaria from a row of sample pots at the "Medical Detection Dogs" charity headquarters in Milton Keynes, England. Leon Neal / Getty Images

The coronavirus has at least seven different strains, making it especially hard to detect, according to Hare.

Medical Detection Dogs has successfully trained it's dogs to detect cancer, Parkinson's and bacterial infections, through the sense of smell and is now looking for donations to help cover the costs of the intensive programme. Leon Neal / Getty Images

In France, samples of the coronavirus are kept on hand to test the dogs.

Samples of the COVID-19 (the novel coronavirus) bacteria are displayed in order to be used to prepare a training session for dogs to teach them to recognize the smell. OEL SAGET / Getty Images

Officers rub pieces of fabric with the coronavirus and place them in cones to test the dogs during training sessions.

A policeman soaks pieces of fabric with samples of the novel coronavirus. JOEL SAGET / Getty Images

The dogs then sniff each cone and alert their trainer when they've found the infected pieces of fabric.

A dog is taught to find a piece of fabric infected with the COVID-19 (the novel coronavirus) bacteria during a training session, on May 13, 2020, in Maison-Alfort, on the outskirts of Paris. JOEL SAGET / Getty Images

In Santiago, Chile, the National Police and the Catholic University of Chile are working together to train four dogs to detect the coronavirus in public spaces by September.

A police officer and trainer works with a dog sniffing a box with a sample at Carabineros de Chile Dog Training School in Santiago, Chile. Marcelo Hernandez / Getty Images

In Santiago, Chile, the National Police and the Catholic University of Chile are working together to train four dogs to detect the coronavirus in public spaces by September.

Photos show how outdoor classes and other coronavirus-fighting measures usher kids to school in relative safety around the world

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Dogs are being trained to find the coronavirus by smelling people in public spaces

While there is no evidence that conclusively proves sniffer dogs can detect the coronavirus, dogs have long been used to sniff out bombs, cancer, and even malaria.

"There are lots of species that actually have better noses in dogs, but what dogs have is this pairing of a great nose and communicative ability," Hare told Insider.

Dogs have an olfactory epithelium, responsible for detecting smells, that is 30% larger than that of a human — making their noses especially powerful.

"The way that dogs are able to detect the virus or cancer, or even a bomb, is that there's something associated with a stain they're searching for that they can smell," Hare told Insider.

Sniffer dogs are trained by detecting something associated with illnesses or drugs such as sweat or chemicals and alerting their trainer by sitting or barking.

The coronavirus has at least seven different strains, making it especially hard to detect, according to Hare.

In France, samples of the coronavirus are kept on hand to test the dogs.

Officers rub pieces of fabric with the coronavirus and place them in cones to test the dogs during training sessions.

The dogs then sniff each cone and alert their trainer when they've found the infected pieces of fabric.

In Santiago, Chile, the National Police and the Catholic University of Chile are working together to train four dogs to detect the coronavirus in public spaces by September.