25 Sept 2020
Veterinary group’s Finland branch is providing sponsorship towards project and health care services to 16 dogs involved in trial at Helsinki Airport.
Paul Imrie
Job Title
Anssi Tast of IVC Evidensia and Susanna Paavilainen from the Wise Nose Smell Detection Association with dogs Miina and Kossi. Image © Kari Pellinen
Trained COVID-19 detecting dogs have started a four-month trial at Helsinki Airport in a project that’s received support from vet group IVC Evidensia.
The company’s Finnish arm is one of the sponsors and it is also offering health care services to the 16 dogs taking part in the training, which, if successful, could reduce testing times and save millions of euros if implemented worldwide.
Preliminary studies have offered promising results, and a group of trained dogs is now working at the airport to identify possible COVID-19-positive patients.
The Wise Nose Smell Detection Association is training the dogs, while the University of Helsinki is continuing to carry out research into their ability to sniff COVID-19. Purina is providing food for the dogs.
Finnavia, Finland’s airport company, is providing testing facilities and the City of Vantaa, where the airport is sited, is also involved in the ground-breaking project.
Provisionally, dogs could detect COVID-19 in 10 seconds, with results reported to customs.
The eventual aim is for the dogs to be given service dog status and for them to become standard at airports across the world.
