The Administration for the Development of Weapons and Technological Infrastructure at the Defense Ministry is leading an effort to train dogs from the IDF’s Oketz Unit (canine unit) to identify coronavirus patients by sniffing saliva samples, Channel 13 News reported on Monday.
The effort follows studies that have shown that dogs can identify people who have the flu, cancer and malaria, through their developed sense of smell.
Similar experiments are taking place in several countries in the world.
As part of the experiment, dogs from the Oketz Unit will be presented with saliva samples of coronavirus patients, and they should learn to recognize their scent and wag their tail.
The chances of success are slim, but the Ministry of Defense is looking in every direction for a breakthrough that will help control the corona epidemic.