Dog will help sniff out bust water pipes
A WATER firm is to use a sniffer dog to help it find burst pipes and leaks.
Cocker spaniel Snipe, 16 months, is trained to sniff out chlorine in tap water.
He has been recruited by United Utilities, which supplies three million homes in the North West.
Snipe’s owner Ross Stephenson, 32, runs Liverpool-based pest control firm Cape SPC. He set it up after serving with the Royal Veterinary Corps.
He said of Snipe’s training: “All I did was start with normal tap water, then put in extra chlorine to make it stronger.”
Tap water has one part chlorine per million parts water and a dog can detect one particle in a billion.
Hannah Wardle of UU said: “Snipe is going to be an invaluable asset.”