Specially-trained dogs that can sniff out coronavirus could soon be spotted in Leeds.
The clever canines, which have been trained by the charity Medical Detection Dogs, can detect Covid-19 on people.
The adorable Labradors were put through the paces at London Paddington train station in a trial earlier this month, where health secretary Matt Hancock was joined by the Duchess of Cornwall to see them in action.
There are suggestions the sniffer dogs could be deployed in busy areas such as train stations and shopping centres to try and find people with Covid-19 and therefore minimise the risk of asymptomatic people mixing with others.
If the trials prove successful, they could be on the streets of major cities, such as Leeds, in early 2021.
"These dogs are simply amazing – they can smell the odour of Covid!" said Lilly Moss from Leeds security guard company Guards.co.uk.
"Training is currently taking place to enable them to actually sniff out those carrying Covid-19 in busy areas, that’s some skill.
"The Covid-19 sniffer dogs take less than one second to sniff out the virus, and have been successful in detecting the virus even when no symptoms have been showing.
"We have already had enquiries from some large shopping centre clients about how we could integrate sniffer dogs into the regular patrols – they are jumping on every resource they can to keep open and trading."
Anyone wanting to help these special dogs and who has tested positive for coronavirus can apply for a pack containing a t-shirt, mask and socks, which are used to train the dogs, here.
