Scent detection dogs detect a species of hard tick, Dermacentor albipictus, with comparable accuracy and efficiency to traditional tick drag surveys
Abstract Background Accurate surveillance data are critical for addressing tick and tick-borne pathogen risk to human and animal health. Current surveillance methods for detecting invading or expanding tick species are limited in their ability to scale efficiently to state or national levels. In thi...
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BMC
2025-04-01
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| Series: | Parasites & Vectors |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1186/s13071-024-06519-8 |
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| author | Troy Koser Aimee Hurt Laura Thompson Alyson Courtemanch Benjamin Wise Paul Cross |
| author_facet | Troy Koser Aimee Hurt Laura Thompson Alyson Courtemanch Benjamin Wise Paul Cross |
| author_sort | Troy Koser |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Background Accurate surveillance data are critical for addressing tick and tick-borne pathogen risk to human and animal health. Current surveillance methods for detecting invading or expanding tick species are limited in their ability to scale efficiently to state or national levels. In this study we explored the potential use of scent detection dogs to assist field surveys for a hard tick species: Dermacentor albipictus. Methods We used a series of indoor and in situ training simulations to teach scent detection dogs to recognize D. albipictus scent, distinguish tick scent from associated vegetation, and develop a cautious search pattern. After training, we deployed both a scent detection dog survey team and a human-only survey team on transect and surveillance plot surveys then compared the detection rates and efficiency of both methods. Results Scent detection dogs required more time and money to train on field surveys but were comparable to traditional tick drags when accounting for cost per unit area surveyed. There was a lack of agreement on positive (ticks present) versus negative (ticks not present) sites between the two methods, implying that neither method is particularly reliable at detecting D. albipictus. Conclusions Estimating detection bias and false negative rates for tick surveillance methods such as tick drags will be important for accurately evaluating tick-borne disease risk across space and into the future. We found scent detection dogs to be a reasonable alternative sampling approach to consider when ticks are at low abundance or patchily distributed such as during tick range expansion or novel invasions. Scent detection dogs may also be useful for sampling for ticks in areas or along surfaces that are difficult to sample with the traditional tick drag technique like at ports of entry or livestock competitions. Graphical Abstract |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-c8c2363de9e5431492e0a7364ac2147c |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 1756-3305 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-04-01 |
| publisher | BMC |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Parasites & Vectors |
| spelling | doaj-art-c8c2363de9e5431492e0a7364ac2147c2025-08-20T02:08:08ZengBMCParasites & Vectors1756-33052025-04-0118111010.1186/s13071-024-06519-8Scent detection dogs detect a species of hard tick, Dermacentor albipictus, with comparable accuracy and efficiency to traditional tick drag surveysTroy Koser0Aimee Hurt1Laura Thompson2Alyson Courtemanch3Benjamin Wise4Paul Cross5Montana State UniversityWorking Dogs for ConservationNational Climate Adaptation Science Center, U.S. Geological SurveyWyoming Game and Fish DepartmentWyoming Game and Fish DepartmentNorthern Rocky Mountain Science Center, U.S. Geological SurveyAbstract Background Accurate surveillance data are critical for addressing tick and tick-borne pathogen risk to human and animal health. Current surveillance methods for detecting invading or expanding tick species are limited in their ability to scale efficiently to state or national levels. In this study we explored the potential use of scent detection dogs to assist field surveys for a hard tick species: Dermacentor albipictus. Methods We used a series of indoor and in situ training simulations to teach scent detection dogs to recognize D. albipictus scent, distinguish tick scent from associated vegetation, and develop a cautious search pattern. After training, we deployed both a scent detection dog survey team and a human-only survey team on transect and surveillance plot surveys then compared the detection rates and efficiency of both methods. Results Scent detection dogs required more time and money to train on field surveys but were comparable to traditional tick drags when accounting for cost per unit area surveyed. There was a lack of agreement on positive (ticks present) versus negative (ticks not present) sites between the two methods, implying that neither method is particularly reliable at detecting D. albipictus. Conclusions Estimating detection bias and false negative rates for tick surveillance methods such as tick drags will be important for accurately evaluating tick-borne disease risk across space and into the future. We found scent detection dogs to be a reasonable alternative sampling approach to consider when ticks are at low abundance or patchily distributed such as during tick range expansion or novel invasions. Scent detection dogs may also be useful for sampling for ticks in areas or along surfaces that are difficult to sample with the traditional tick drag technique like at ports of entry or livestock competitions. Graphical Abstracthttps://doi.org/10.1186/s13071-024-06519-8Alces alcesDermacentor albipictusGreater yellowstone ecosystemHard ticksMooseScent detection dogs |
| spellingShingle | Troy Koser Aimee Hurt Laura Thompson Alyson Courtemanch Benjamin Wise Paul Cross Scent detection dogs detect a species of hard tick, Dermacentor albipictus, with comparable accuracy and efficiency to traditional tick drag surveys Parasites & Vectors Alces alces Dermacentor albipictus Greater yellowstone ecosystem Hard ticks Moose Scent detection dogs |
| title | Scent detection dogs detect a species of hard tick, Dermacentor albipictus, with comparable accuracy and efficiency to traditional tick drag surveys |
| title_full | Scent detection dogs detect a species of hard tick, Dermacentor albipictus, with comparable accuracy and efficiency to traditional tick drag surveys |
| title_fullStr | Scent detection dogs detect a species of hard tick, Dermacentor albipictus, with comparable accuracy and efficiency to traditional tick drag surveys |
| title_full_unstemmed | Scent detection dogs detect a species of hard tick, Dermacentor albipictus, with comparable accuracy and efficiency to traditional tick drag surveys |
| title_short | Scent detection dogs detect a species of hard tick, Dermacentor albipictus, with comparable accuracy and efficiency to traditional tick drag surveys |
| title_sort | scent detection dogs detect a species of hard tick dermacentor albipictus with comparable accuracy and efficiency to traditional tick drag surveys |
| topic | Alces alces Dermacentor albipictus Greater yellowstone ecosystem Hard ticks Moose Scent detection dogs |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1186/s13071-024-06519-8 |
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