By: NATASHA SMITH
A BROWN and white five-month-old puppy called Joe is the first dog in Portugal to undergo training to be able to detect the smell of decomposing bodies, in an effort to help police investigations in the future.
Joe’s training at Dogspa, a dog hotel in Olhão, has begun and will continue for the next year-and-a-half, but, at the moment, his training schedule is very light because he is still young and still mischievous, according to staff.
Dogspa owner Sandra Da Silva told The Resident that Joe has “a good nose” and he will be the first dog to be trained for this purpose in Portugal. “The idea to train dogs to detect the smell of a corpse came about from the Madeleine case”, she said.
At first, Joe began his obedience training but when they heard that there were no dogs which could detect bodies in Portugal, they decided to train Joe for this purpose.
Dog Spa
Dogspa itself has been making headlines on its own as a new luxury spa and holiday camp for dogs. Among the many services offered at Dogspa are baths, obedience training, physiotherapy and maternity care.
With flexible times, dogs are able to stay for a weekend and can even be cared for there up to two months. According to the owner, Sandra da Silva, “most dogs with Portuguese owners tend to stay for the weekend whereas dogs with foreign owners usually stay for longer periods”. Being located near the airport is another key asset for dog owners as it is more convenient to drop a dog off at Dogspa and then go straight to the airport.
At the hotel, man’s best friend can look forward to a temperature controlled bedroom, daily disinfectant washes, grooming, a balanced diet and regular walks, and the dogs have full use of the training centre. Dogspa even offers a dog-sitting service if owners are only away for a few hours.
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