German sniffer dogs detect COVID-19 with 94% accuracy

Researchers at Hanover university's vet clinic present Filou, the 3-year-old Belgian shepherd which is able to detect COVID-19 in humans' saliva samples, in Hanover, Germany, February 3, 2021. REUTERS/Hannibal Hanschke

HANOVER, Germany (Reuters) - A German veterinary clinic has trained sniffer dogs to detect the novel coronavirus in human saliva samples with 94% accuracy.

The dogs are conditioned to scent out the "corona odour" that comes from cells in infected people, said Esther Schalke, a vet at Germany's armed forces school for service dogs.