Emirates News Agency / YouTube
This is a world first since the start of the health crisis linked to the Covid-19 pandemic. Dogs specially trained to detect sick people have been deployed to airports in the United Arab Emirates.
In the United Arab Emirates, the coronavirus pandemic has caused 364 deaths to date, for a total of more than 64,000 cases detected since the start of the health crisis. The country is doing everything it can to stem the spread of the disease, especially at its points of entry. Recently, authorities have deployed dogs trained in the detection of Covid-19 cases to all airports in the federal state. It is the first country in the world to do so, reports Sputnik News .
The canines in question, which are from the police , are responsible for sniffing sweat samples taken from travelers arriving in Emirati territory. The dogs have no contact with these people, the operation being carried out in an isolated room . Detection of the virus by this method is rapid and 92% reliable .
A similar approach is currently being tested in France, especially in Corsica where Gabriel Attal , government spokesperson, saw the dog Joyce at work last week.
In the United Arab Emirates, all passengers arriving in the country must present a negative Covid-19 test certificate, made within 4 days of departure. Those coming from certain destinations are subjected to PCR tests on arrival.
A spot posted by the Emirates News Agency’s YouTube channel shows a few of these specialist dogs, including German Shepherds , at work at Dubai International Airport. Major Salah Al Mazrooei , police officer in charge of the Airport Security Inspection, explains that a space has been dedicated to the detection of Covid-19 by using police dogs.
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“ Samples are taken in collaboration with DHA partners [Editor’s note: the public health agency Dubai Health Authority ] . Results are ready in less than a minute. The United Arab Emirates are the first in the world to use police dogs to detect cases of Covid-19 at airports, ”he adds.
