In a recent study, trained dogs were able to sniff out 97% of COVID-19 cases from sweat samples, whether symptomatic or asymptomatic. Their sense of smell was used to screen for COVID-19, which was actually more sensitive than some antigen tests.

Many dogs were trained to detect drugs in airports or to be service dogs. In early 2020, researchers began to train dogs to detect COVID-19 cases through smell. It took eight to ten weeks for the dogs to be trained to detect COVID-19.

This can be effective for places like airports or sporting events where many people gather in one place and it takes much less time than PCR tests. PCR tests typically took an hour for the results while dogs were able to detect them in a few seconds. However, one challenge is that dogs that worked well in the lab may not work as well in the public environment.

They can be accurate and effective but will not replace PCR tests. The dogs would be used to screen passengers and require them to quarantine while waiting for the results of the PCR test. The PCR testing is more reliable since they are actually testing the genetic material of the virus while trained dogs are relying on their senses.

Since similar projects are being studied in other countries such as France, Finland, and Lebanon, it is possible that trained dogs will be used to detect people who are infected with COVID-19 in airports.

By Jiyun Seo