At present, many countries have used sniffing dogs to detect the new crown, such as Finland and the United Arab Emirates. Recently, Dominique Grandjean, a professor at the French Veterinary School in Alfort, called for France to also deploy sniffing dogs on a large scale to detect the new crown, arguing that training dogs to screen for the new crown is faster and more accurate than nucleic acid testing. Without waiting for the state to formally order the deployment, he has taken action and has announced that the Alfoe Veterinary School may train 350 dogs specifically for the disabled elderly nursing home. Many parts of France are also considering following suit.
A dog's nose is faster and more accurate than a swab
In September, Finland's Helsinki-Vantaa International Airport began deploying sniffing dogs for a four-month COVID-19 detection test. In practice, sniffing dogs sniff samples and identify them under the guidance of their managers. If there is an abnormality, the relevant passenger will be taken to the health information point for further testing.
According to a recent report by the Times, sniffing dogs can detect the virus earlier than nucleic acid testing. In the beginning, the testers found a big problem, that is, sometimes sniffing dogs clearly indicated that someone was infected with COVID-19, but the same person was tested negative with a nucleic acid test. They thought it was a misjudgment by the sniffing dogs. Unexpectedly, a few days later, these people who tested negative began to show symptoms, and finally proved that the results given by the sniffer dogs were correct. This also further proves that sniffing dogs can detect COVID-19 at an earlier stage of infection than nucleic acid testing.
The University of Helsinki began testing the COVID-19 sniffing dog program this spring, which has previously been used to identify cancer. In addition, the British government has previously "thrown" 500,000 pounds to provide financial support for the sniffer dog project.
In fact, the Uae (started in July), the United Kingdom, and Australia are already experimenting with detection dogs at airports or borders. In addition, Germany, Chile and other countries have also reported relevant training tests, and Aeroflot is also expected to start using detection dogs soon.
On 28 October, Finland awarded four airport sniffers the "Special Hero Dog Award".
Why hasn't France deployed sniffing dogs yet?
But why hasn't France enabled this rapid detection method yet? Dominique Granjean, a professor at alfort's veterinary school, gave a grumpy answer: "There is no doubt that this method is too simple and costly to get into the eyes of decision-makers."
In fact, since March, Ge Ran rang has been busy training for sniffing dogs for COVID-19 testing. He said that this very reliable test method has attracted the attention of many countries, but France is still "indifferent".
He revealed with disappointment: "I have submitted a lot of complete information on all aspects to both the General Directorate of Health and the Scientific Committee. I was asked to develop a complete national testing deployment plan, and I did so, submitting it a few weeks ago. However, the only feedback I got was that they received the material." He also revealed that "France has even sponsored the relevant training and deployment plans in Lebanon", but he is not very "cold" to the implementation of the testing program on home.
Why is there slow feedback and lack of interest in his plans? Grengen thinks this: Since the outbreak of the epidemic, the veterinary community has been automatically excluded, "as if only humans can take care of humans". The medical profession, on the other hand, has fallen into a circle of thinking that trusts only complex tools, forgetting that simple approaches can be just as effective or even better.
He hopes that a study he will publish next in the scientific journal Plos-One will change the image of a dog in the minds of politicians. According to him, dogs that have been trained for four to seven weeks can be as accurate as 93%.
The French "Echo" also reported that the detection reliability of sniffing dogs exceeded 90%, and even the "false negative" could be detected with courage! In contrast, the correct detection rate of infected people in the controlled PCR test is only 70%.
According to The German News Agency, trained sniffing dogs only need 10 to 100 molecular samples to sniff out cases of infection, while polymerase chain reaction (PCR) instrumental testing requires 18 million molecular samples.
350 sniffing dogs are about to take up their jobs in nursing homes
According to Ge Ranjang, before the large-scale operation of "saving mankind from water and fire", 10 dogs have reached out to the French to "help claws".
The little guys are located in four fire and rescue departments in southern Corsica, Oise, Seine-Marne and Evelyn, dutifully carrying out internal testing.
The Handi'chiens Association, which trains people with disabilities free of charge and provides assistance dogs, also asked the Alfo Veterinary School to train 350 dogs specifically for nursing homes for the disabled elderly.
"This will allow them to bring their dogs to screen every day, because sometimes PCR testing for the elderly is not feasible," Grander said. ”
In addition, the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region is also conducting sniffing dog training in Bordeaux and Périgueux, while Auvergne Rhône-Alpes is considering following suit.
Dog nose knows everything!
Why can a dog perform so well? It is estimated that dogs have "a million times the sensitivity" of smell as humans. Dogs can inspirate up to 300 times per minute, which means that olfactory cells are constantly exposed to new particles.
In addition, Ge Ranjang said that after the virus enters human cells, it will multiply, produce specific molecules, and exist in the saliva, breathing, urine, sweat, and feces of infected people. Dogs can be sensitive to the presence of "enemies" in these "outputs".
So, can all dog breeds be trained for testing? Theoretically yes. However, dogs with a large play are likely to perform better, because training is actually a process of playing games and receiving rewards, just like the training of drug dogs.
Why can't dogs sniff people directly?
In the current test, the dog does not have direct contact with the person, but "hands" on the sweat extract of the person being tested.
So why can't they sniff people directly? "In theory, it is possible, but in reality there will be various problems. For example, some people are afraid of dogs, are allergic to dogs, or fear of being infected, as well as cultural factors such as Islam that regards dogs as unclean animals," reveals Clotilde Julien, coordinator of the Nosais project.
Considering the above situation, sweat is easier to collect and less contaminated to handle, so it is the most feasible. At Helsinki-Vantaa Airport, for example, testees take sweat samples from their necks, throats and wrists.