Dogs undergo training to enhance their abilities and personalities so they can perform specific tasks and duties. Trainers, particularly for guide dogs, know the hardships and obstacles dogs undergoing training go through. Many dogs start training but only a few get qualified for the job.
In the UK, three dogs underwent guide dog training. Unfortunately, they did not pass the course. Although it ended their quest to be guide dogs, a new beginning awaits them and this job is to help detect COVID-19.
The charitable group Guide Dogs breeds and trains puppies to aid the blind. The three dogs, Ivan, Spencer, and Maple, were with the group since they were still puppies. Ivan and Spencer are both crossbreed Golden Retriever-Labradors, whereas Maple is a black Labradoodle.
The dogs spent two years of guide dog training but none of them qualified for the role. Ivan was a friendly dog that liked searching for stuff. Maple preferred to spend time playing ball rather than training but was highly motivated. And the very active Spencer, was so fond of sniffing that he proved to be unfit for the post.
The group was sure to pull the dogs out of training but volunteered them to a different charity group, Medical Detection Dogs, which had been training dogs to track down many kinds of illnesses over the years. The Medical Detection Dogs collaborated with the Durham University and London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine to form a team of the finest canines that can detect the life-threatening Coronavirus.
Guide Dogs’ Director of Canine Affairs, Tim Stafford, believed that Ivan, Spencer, and Maple will be the best fit for their new mission because of their searching ability, determination, and energy. Medical Detection Dogs put the three dogs under a four-week initial trial. Tim must be right when the trio passed the trial.
Ivan, Spencer, and Maple started their official training. Once they completed the training and qualified for the job, they would do their job in public places. They could be playing a significant role in a mission to stop the spread of the virus. The immediate and easy detection method of the virus that involves the finest canines would be a big part of history.
Source: BBC
