In all mutts and in almost all pure breeds, the nose dominates the face. (Pure breeds specially bred to have receding nose are the exception.) There is a good reason for this.
Where we humans observe and appreciate our surroundings mainly with our eyes, the dog uses mainly his nose.
The structure of the dog’s nose, the way he breathes, and how his nose operates are also unique. We shall leave it at that, as addressing the matter will unnecessarily lengthen this article; it is not critical to our discussion.
We have seen that the dog can detect the scent of a drop of butyric acid released in a gigantic tank with a volume of 31,986,430,457 cu. m. (1,129,590,131,199 cu. ft.)
Or, taking another analogy, he can detect the scent of blood even if only one drop of it is mixed with all the water in 20 Olympic-size swimming pools. Assuming the depth of the pools is the minimum 2 metres throughout, that equates to 3,001,570 litres (660,253 Imperial gallons) of water.
How is this possible?
Simply put, because the dog has a wonder nose.
Where our olfactory epithelium covers a mere 10 sq. cm, the dog’s is 170 sq. cm. The olfactory epithelium is a layer of cells found deep inside the nose.
Where we have from only 5 million to 6 million scent receptive cells, dogs have, depending on the breed, from 250 million to 300 million.
Where we have between 12 million and 40 million olfactory neurons, dogs, depending on the breed, can have a staggering 250 million to a mind-boggling 2,000 million.
The dog has yet another organ that aids him in, among other activities, perceiving certain substances with no detectable odours. This is called Jacobson’s Organ a.k.a. vomeronasal organ.
Scientists are divided as to the existence of this smallish organ in humans. Some are of the opinion it does not exist, while others hold that if it does, it is vestigial.
No escape for the big C
The dog is employed by the armed forces, various enforcement agencies, and search-and-rescue teams due to his ability to detect cadavers (even underwater), contraband drugs, explosives, mines, smuggled wildlife, etc.
The dog’s incredible sense of smell also enables him to detect several types of cancer even when they are at ‘zero stage’, a stage so early they are harmless. At this stage, they cannot be detected by even top oncologists and the most advanced medical equipment and tests.
Detection at that stage means only a relatively simple treatment is required, and the cure is permanent.
Dogs that can detect cancer are not of any special breeds. Any dog from the most rare breed to mutts can do it. Incidentally, let’s not look down on mutts. Near the end of this series, we’ll see they have a big, pleasant surprise for us.
And here, the importance of bonding with our dog will be even more clear.
Most dog owners in the West bond closely with their dogs. And the care they give their dogs has caused a multi-billion-dollar industry to evolve.
The industry offers a myriad kinds of products — meant for dogs, of course. These range from the ubiquitous collar and leash to boots and outdoor wear to beddings, from toiletries to supplements to medicines, from beacon lights to GPS tracking devices to . . . well, you name it, and it’s available.
The first case of the dog having detected human cancer as recorded in the British journal Lancet and which spurred scientific studies on the phenomenal ability occurred at a home.
In 1989, a 44-year-old British lady’s Border Collie-Doberman cross persistently sniffed at a lesion on her left thigh but ignored other moles on her leg. In fact, when she was wearing shorts, the dog even tried to bite off that particular mole. Concerned, she sought medical attention. A biopsy conducted revealed the presence of malignant melanoma cancer.
There have been many instances of dog owners having been spared long, painful treatment or even death through the timely intervention of a wonder nose.
Up to now, dogs have been trained to detect the common types of cancer such as melanoma, lung cancer, colorectal cancer, colon cancer, ovarian cancer, prostate cancer, and breast cancer. The other diseases and afflictions they are trained to detect include coronavirus, diabetes, malaria, and migraine.
One Duane Pickel, a dog trainer in the US with decades of experience, in fact, said you could train a dog to do just about anything you wanted.
In the laboratory, dogs are given samples of the subjects’ blood, blood plasma, breath, skin, stool, sweat and urine. They can tell with from 95% to 98% accuracy if the samples provided are cancerous. The success rate far surpasses that achieved by employing scientific method which, at best, is around 78% to 80%.
Ability to predict
The dog can also predict such events as an onset of migraine up to around 2 hours in advance, and epileptic seizures well in time for his afflicted owner to prepare himself.
Dogs can smell fear
When we sweat due to physical exertion, we produce ‘hot’ sweat. When we do due to emotional stress, such as fear, we produce ‘cold’ sweat. Butyric acid is present in both types of our sweat.
Thus, the dog can also literally smell fear in those around him who are afraid of his species.
