Sniffer dogs, with little training, are capable of identifying positive samples of the novel coronavirus with up to 94% accuracy. A research team from the University of Hannover, Germany, who looked into the incredible sensitivity of dogs’ noses, hope that sniffer dogs can become a powerful screening tool in public spaces to help slow the spread of COVID-19.

The team spent one week training eight specialised sniffer dogs to distinguish between samples infected with SARS-CoV-2, the coronavirus strain that causes COVID-19, and uninfected controls.Some 1,012 saliva and tracheobronchial samples were collected, with the dogs then tasked with identifying those that were infected with SARS-CoV-2.

The dogs correctly identified 157 positive samples and 792 negative samples, while incorrectly identifying 33 negatives and incorrectly rejecting 30 positives – making up an overall average detection rate of 94%.

“The results of the study are incredibly exciting,” said the HOD of Veterinary Medicine, Professor Holger Volk. “We have created a solid foundation for future studies to investigate what the dogs smell and whether they can also be used to differentiate between different types of illness or clinical phenotypes.”