Functional stability of the sence of smell in working dogs under controlled traffic LOADS

Abstract

Search-work in various environment conditions, high expectations for working dogs and theirs successful results are largely determined by the stability of the physiological systems to stress factors. The article represent the influence of the controlled variations of traffic loads on the functional stability оf the working dogs’ olfactory function by the comparative analysis of the measured indicators. The studies were conducted аt various periods of search work in accordance with the procedures outlined in the regulations with the use of modern devices. In all three groups of studied dogs after finish of the traffic load- was observed an increase in search period with increasing length of the route itself. In group I, after light, moderate and heavy functional loads, the search period increased by 4, 13 and 30 seconds, respectively; in group II, the increase was 5, 22 and 54 seconds; in group III, there was an increase of 11, 55 and 109 seconds from the initial data. The results of the study showed that the sense of smell most successfully operates at light loads at a route length of 1 km and in dogs with special training (group I). The average time to restore the sense of smell in dogs with light load in group I was 10 minutes, and with heavy load - 50 minutes. In all groups of the studied dogs there was a decrease in the sensitivity of the sense of smell as the route loads increased. The results showed a significant impact of training on dogs and the degree of load on olfactory ability and performance of working dogs.