The Plan for Dogs to Hunt Out the Coronavirus
Labradors and spaniels can sniff out malaria in humans, and scientists say we may be just weeks away from unleashing them to spot virus superspreaders.
How Malaria-Detecting Dogs Could Help Battle Coronavirus
Finding virus carriers—especially those with no symptoms—is among the biggest hurdles to addressing the pandemic.
But what if dogs can do that? Scientists in London say that dogs could in fact revolutionize the hunt for Covid-19 by sniffing out subtle odors produced by the virus when within the human body. The London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine is crowdfunding a project to train canines to detect healthy-seeming people who haven’t necessarily realized yet they are carriers. If the project is successful, the animal detectives could be working across Britain by the summer.