Think about the last time you were standing in security at an airport. You may have seen a TSA official or two walking around travelers and their luggage with their detection K9. For many years, detection (or “sniffer”) dogs were confined exclusively to police K9 units and cadaver dog handlers. These dogs were, and still are, trained to find drugs, bombs and dead people.
Approximately two-thirds of a dog’s brain is controlled by its olfactory system (a.k.a. its nose and sense of smell). While the average human has about five million olfactory (scent) receptors, the average dog has about 125 million – with the German Shepherd and some other breeds possessing over 225 million. Alongside their substantial collection of scent receptors, dogs also have a highly intricate and refined olfactory system which allows them to move each nostril individually, take in odors at different speeds and separate compound odors into individual components. This means that when a human smells a pot roast, a dog can smell each ingredient – beef, carrots, onions, flour, salt, etc. – separately.
The dog’s phenomenal olfactory system is what enables them to be so good at detection. It also enables search and rescue dogs to find people who have been trapped in the woods or under the snow for over 72 hours – following scent trails that are miles long.
Right now, you are probably thinking – ‘Great lecture on dog noses, but what does this have to do with saving the planet?’…