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Cute Overload: These Puppies Are Being Trained To Sniff Out Cancer
By
John Del Signore
Published Sep 17, 2012
Modified Sep 17, 2012
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By
John Del Signore
Published Sep 17, 2012
Modified Sep 17, 2012
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No matter what Primus says, there can never be too many puppies. And these puppies right here aren't JUST ridiculously adorable, they are also being trained to save lives. The Penn Vet Working Dog Center recently opened a center for the training and breeding of "detection dogs." Each one is named in honor of dogs who searched for survivors of 9/11 and since passed away. Researchers hand-picked seven puppies, including Labradors, a golden retriever and a Dutch Shepherd. Their ranks will soon grow to over two dozen.
The dogs will be studied in an attempt to understand why they excel at detection work, which involves military deployments, searching for missing persons, and even sniffing out diseases like diabetes and cancer. Researchers will preserve the sperm of the most adept male dogs, and this will be used to breed future generations of detection dogs. "These kinds of working dogs are important to the safety and security of our nation," says Cynthia M. Otto, DVM, PhD, and director of the Center. "We hope to study and train their protégés at this center and aim to advance the health and performance of all working dogs through our work." We just want to watch them nap!
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puppies
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John Del Signore
Originally from the Albany area, John Del Signore has called NYC home since 1995. In addition to his thousands of meticulously-crafted bespoke blog posts for Gothamist, his writing has also been published in The Awl, Deadspin, The Nervous Breakdown, and performed at The Brick Theater in Brooklyn.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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