Testing for COVID-19 has become a big political issue for all the wrong reasons.
Far too many Canadians who don't need to be tested are lining up to get the test, overwhelming labs, and then complaining about the time it takes to get a result.
But now it seems those overwhelmed labs may get a break, from man's best friends.
Like these at Finland's Helsinki airport .
The idea is spreading.
Around the world – from the UK to Finland, Spain, Brazil, Lebanon and Australia – teams of researchers are training dogs to sniff out Covid-19. And some say the idea of training hundreds of thousands of canine noses to check for coronavirus is not as far-fetched as it may sound.
And the four footed brigade could be particularly useful in long term care homes.
“We can have one dog per retirement house that is trained and this dog would be able every single morning to check everybody, just by walking by...”
Helping to keep COVID at bay, while providing residents with much needed companionship...
Dogs our brilliant furry friends.
What would we do without them?
That is so cute, Simon. They really are our best friends, which is why it infuriates me so when I read stories about animal abuse. Sniffing dogs have been trained to pick up so many other health issues, including as service animals who pick up blood pressure spikes and heart rate increases from panic attacks among sufferers of various mental illnesses. For many vets with PTSD, they're indispensable, not just as social/emotional companions, but as "home health aides" too.
ReplyDeleteIt's not only dogs though -- there was once a story about a cat in a Rhode Island nursing home who, for some strange reason, was able to detect which of the residents was nearing their end. He would go to their rooms and sit on their beds with them, to keep them company until they passed.
http://www.nbcnews.com/id/19959718/ns/health-pet_health/t/cat-plays-furry-grim-reaper-nursing-home/
I wonder, if someone could put sniffing dogs (or cats) to work at the LTC homes in Ontario, and trained them to "hound" out corruption, would the noses of all the pets in the province lead them en masse directly to the doorstep of Mike Harris? Certainly better than the clueless humans in the media... No wonder Doug wants unfettered cash from Justin -- he'd probably need it to hire a ton of dog catchers, while scores of justifiably fed-up nurses get laid off...