Beagle sniffs polar bear poo in pregnancy test trial at US zoo
Certain proteins are present in the excrement of expectant polar bears
Zoos around the US will soon find out whether a beagle named Elvis can let them know when their polar bears are pregnant.
The two-year-old dog has been specially trained for a year by a handler who has taught canines to sniff out everything from explosives to bed bugs. A Cincinnati Zoo animal conservation scientist had the idea after reading about studies on using dogs to detect cancer.
Confirming pregnancies of the massive bears, a threatened species, has been difficult, and zoo officials say knowing can help make sure they and the mother bears are ready for giving birth to and raising cubs.
They separate them from males, get them into dens with extra bedding, step up video-camera monitoring, and line up staff and volunteers for 24-hour "cub watches" later.
"It's always nice to know in advance," said Randi Meyerson of the Toledo Zoo, who co-ordinates polar bear species survival planning for the Association of Zoos and Aquariums.
She praised the beagle project as "thinking outside the box" to provide a potentially important new tool. It's simple for zookeepers, who pick up faecal samples for Elvis to check out.
