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Use of detection dogs in conservation efforts
Article By:
Richards, Ngaio L. Working Dogs for Conservation, Three Forks, Montana.
Woollett, Deborah A. (Smith) Working Dogs for Conservation, Three Forks, Montana.
Last reviewed:2015
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1036/1097-8542.YB150652
Dogs have long been recognized for their exceptional and superior sense of smell. The canine nose holds more than 200 million olfactory cells (40 times the number found in human noses), and 60% of a dog's brain is devoted to olfaction. Humans have harnessed the scenting prowess of dogs to help find or detect numerous items, from bombs, drugs, lost people, and cadavers to agricultural pests (such as the red palm weevil, Rhynchophorus ferrugineus), chemical spills, pipeline leaks, and cancer. In each of these applications, dogs are taught to find a specific scent, also called the target, and to bring its presence to their handler's attention (Fig. 1).
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