How good is a Labrador retriever’s sense of smell?

Labrador Retrievers are well known for our incredible sense of smell, even when compared to other dog breeds. Our breed became recognized as a good hunting dog in England, and many Labrador Retriever breeders began to emphasize hunting-related traits when breeding. As a result, today’s Labrador Retrievers have an excellent sense of smell! Labradors are also known to be wonderful retrievers, which is another highly prized trait for use as a hunting dog.

Labrador retrievers are frequently used for many important jobs in society. Some Labradors are used by law enforcement, especially for jobs that require a sensitive sense of smell. Labrador Retrievers make excellent detection dogs, as they can identify substances such as explosives, illegal substances and human scent for the police. We can also identify a specific human scent and follow it, like a bloodhound. We can help with missing persons cases, as our olfactory abilities help us distinguish human scent from other odors.

In addition to being used by law enforcement, American Labradors are also widely used as search and rescue dogs. This is another job that requires our sense of smell, as we can direct rescuers to rescue people who may not have been obvious to human senses. We have even been known to spot trapped avalanche victims that are under 18+ feet of snow! Due to our superior sense of smell, many rescuers used the Labrador after the twin towers collapsed in New York City. We were able to help save many people trapped under the rubble, and there are now many dedicated organizations supporting Labrador search and rescue. Since we can detect human scent so efficiently, many Labrador Retrievers are also used to rescue hurricane victims.