Fido fitness tracker that works on fur

‘A major role in detecting diseases’

PET owners may soon be able to keep tabs on their pets’ health using a ‘fitness tracker’ which monitors their heart rate and breathing.

The trackers can pick up signals through thick fur – overcoming a problem which has made many current pet monitors inaccurate.

Human tracking devices work by picking up electrical pulses from the heart, monitoring blood flow or listening in to a heartbeat with microphones. But they need to be next to the skin.

Animals’ fur blocks signals and also causes monitors to slide around, creating noise which can be read as a heartbeat. Current gadgets are attached to collars and are prone to error.

Now scientists at Imperial College London have created a flexible device made of silicone and water which tightly moulds to the shape of the fur – held in place by a harness.

The tracker uses tiny microphones to hear a dog’s heartbeat and breathing patterns – and, as with fitness trackers for people, can spot potential health problems by flagging up when these become irregular.

The device is linked to an owner’s smartphone app which can show how long a pet has exercised or slept – and issue alerts if a problem is detected.

Its inventors think it can also be used to help the work of sniffer dogs detecting bombs or missing people by spotting increased heartbeat and breathing when they find an object. They have already run trials on an Army labrador.

The matchbox-sized tracker – which can also work through clothes on a human – could be available in two to three years for around £50 say its inventors, who add that they are working on versions for cats, cows and horses.

Dr Firat Guder, of Imperial College, said: ‘Wearables are expected to play a major role in detecting diseases early. Our stretchy, flexible invention heralds a whole new type of sensor that can track the health of animals and humans alike over fur or clothing.’