Breeds

Many of our dogs are gundog breeds because they have an excellent sense of smell and are well suited to the tasks they need to master as Medical Alert Assistance or Cancer & Bio Detection Dogs.  Most of our dogs are Labradors / Labrador crosses or Spaniels / Spaniel crosses.  We have other breeds in smaller numbers, such as other gundog breeds, Poodles and Wire haired Dachshunds. Breeds of dogs owned by clients which we support to become Medical Alert Assistance Dogs will vary, as the clients source these themselves, but Brachycephalic breeds (those with shorter noses, like Pugs and Bulldogs) tend not to be suitable for detecting odours associated with medical conditions. 

Here are some of the breeds we have worked with at Medical Detection Dogs:

Characteristics

Medical Alert Assistance Dogs

These dogs need to be confident in many challenging environments which pet dogs wouldn’t usually encounter. In addition to an excellent sense of smell, their trainability, gentle nature and bond with humans are very important characteristics. They also need to be tenacious, to ensure their client pays attention when they alert them to an imminent medical episode. 

Cancer & Bio Detection Dogs

These tend to be selected from working lines as they need drive to consistently indicate when they detect the odour on which they have been trained. The connection between a client and their assistance dog is paramount, but a Cancer & Bio Detection Dog needs to be more independent as they must trust their nose without looking to their handler for reassurance: during double-blind testing, the handler will be unaware if the samples being presented to the dog are disease positive or negative.  

Sourcing Dogs

Medical Detection Dogs source puppies from reputable breeders following research into breed lines, health checks, and personality tests of a litter (this involves fun games which indicate they’re keen to use their noses, are confident and engage well with people). We also have a small breeding scheme, and on occasions exchange puppies with other assistance dog charities.

In addition, we are proud to welcome future life savers from animal rescue centres such as Battersea Dogs & Cats Home and Woodgreen Pets Charity.