Sniffer dogs that can detect asymptomatic coronavirus carriers could screen 250 people an hour

• Labrador and cocker spaniels are undergoing intensive sniffer dog training 
• They can already sniff out potentially diseases like cancer and malaria
• Trials will see if they can correctly identify the odour of Covid-19 on humans
• The approach could 'revolutionise how we detect the virus', experts said

Coronavirus dogs trained to 'sniff' out symptoms of coronavirus before they appear in humans will begin trials in the UK.

The landmark trials are being backed by £500,000 of government money, funding vital research into early methods of detecting the killer bug.

If successful, the dogs could be used to sniff out up to 250 people an hour in a bid to ramp up testing in what will 'revolutionise' virus detection procedures. 

The dogs, a mixture of labradors and cocker spaniels, can already identify deadly diseases including cancer, malaria and Parkinson's disease. 

Florin is one of the Medical Detection Dogs undergoing training to see if man's best friend could play a role in sniffing out the virus 

They will be trained using samples of people infected with coronavirus and those who are uninfected, as some respiratory diseases are known to change body odour.

Research has revealed the dogs are able to detect the odour of disease at the equivalent dilution of one teaspoon of sugar in an astonishing two Olympic-sized swimming pools of water.

The first phase of the trials will be conducted by researchers at London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM), in collaboration with the charity Medical Detection Dogs (MDD) and Durham University.

Professor James Logan, head of the department of disease control at the LSHTM, said he was 'hopeful' of success.

'Our previous work has shown that malaria has a distinctive odour, and with Medical Detection Dogs, we successfully trained dogs to accurately detect malaria,' he said.

'This, combined with the knowledge that respiratory disease can change body odour, makes us hopeful that the dogs can also detect Covid-19.

'If successful, this approach could revolutionise how we detect the virus, with the potential to screen high numbers of people.'

The dogs, a mixture of labradors and cocker spaniels(pictured), can already identify deadly diseases including cancer, malaria and Parkinson's disease (file photo)

Minister for Innovation Lord Bethell said: 'Bio-detection dogs already detect specific cancers and we believe this innovation might provide speedy results as part of our wider testing strategy.

'Accuracy is essential so this trial will tell us whether 'Covid dogs' can reliably detect the virus and stop it spreading.'

Dr Claire Guest, co-founder and chief executive of Medical Detection Dogs, said: 'We are delighted that the Government has given us the opportunity to demonstrate that dogs can play a role in the fight against Covid-19.

'They have the potential to help by quickly screening people, which could be vital in the future.

'We are sure our dogs will be able to find the odour of Covid-19 and we will then move into a second phase to test them in live situations, following which we hope to work with other agencies to train more dogs for deployment.

'We are incredibly proud that a dog's nose could once again save many lives.'