Dogs fight pests

Famous for fighting crime and guiding the blind, man's best friends have a new mission: to detect bedbugs. "The sense of smell in dogs is hundreds of times sharper than a human's eye," says Donna Coberly of training firm Excelsis Detection. "We use dogs to find bedbugs before they attack people." This company trains dogs to detect these insects in hotel rooms, cruise ships and homes, and works together with a pest control service. After one dog detects the animals, a second dog confirms the finding, and both companies make a visual inspection and eradicate the animals. The process is faster than if it's done with humans, Coberly says: While a dog performs an inspection in  a few minutes, a pest control professional takes an hour or two to inspect. Excelsis provides inspection services on commercial, residential and health care properties.