Can Dogs Smell Vape Pens?

Nicholas Roberts

31st Jul 2021

Dogs have a very sophisticated sense of smell that is over 10,000 times better than that of human beings. With over 300 million olfactory receptors in their noses, dogs can smell anything, even what is hidden from our noses. This is why most vape pen users find themselves asking, can dogs smell vape pens?

With proper training, dogs can smell anything, no matter how faint an odor it has. Some dogs are trained to sniff even for micro SD cards, making them an invaluable asset for police officers and customs officials. With this in mind, let us look at our question: can dogs smell cannabis vape pens? The short answer is yes.

Can Drug Dogs Smell Vape Pens?

Police drug sniffer dogs are trained to sniff for and detect numerous substances, including vape cartridges and pens. They might be trained to identify specific substances found in vape pens, which could be either the juice or the cartridge used in the pen.

The simple answer to the question, “Can drug dogs smell vape pens?” is yes, but only if it is something they are trained to pay attention to. Even if a drug sniffer dog is trained to smell multiple substances, the dog can only flag their trainer or owner if they have been trained to identify the specific substance your vape pen uses, no matter how much it is disguised. But how do they do it?

Customs officials and police dog handlers say that drug dogs are trained to identify between two and five different substances. They can separate any odor from a concoction of smells that are mixed up to disguise the smell.

That means if a custom dog is trained to detect nicotine, it will be able to smell any vape pen with nicotine juice in it, even if other flavors mask it. Police dogs are also trained to detect cannabis or THC contained in a juice cartridge, and they can signal their handlers once they identify the smell.

If you are using a marijuana vape pen and ask yourself, can dogs smell cannabis vape pens? You need to be aware that they can, although they might not signal that they detect it if they are not trained to search for that specific scent.

Serene-Tree-Delta-8-THC-Disposable-Vape-Green-Crack

Fun Facts about a Dog’s Sense of Smell

You might be wondering how dogs can detect a single smell from a mix of other scents. Take this for example; when you smell a stew, you only smell the stew as a combined smell, whereas dogs can smell all the different ingredients used to prepare the stew, although they might not be able to distinguish correctly without proper training. Here is how their sense of smell works:

Olfactory Receptors

Dogs have around 300 million olfactory receptors. The receptors receive every scent that a dog sniffs, and many of them connect to nerves that lead directly to the brain’s olfactory lobe. The olfactory lobe stores every smell that the dog processes, enabling them to remember it for the rest of their lives.

Nasal System

A dog’s nasal system has a circulation system right behind it. This means that, unlike humans, they treat breathing and smelling as two separate functions so they can breathe without it interfering with their ability to smell.

Nose Sensitivity

A dog’s nose sensitivity is thousands of times better than ours. According to Professor Alexandra Horowitz, while we can detect a teaspoon of sugar in our coffee, dogs can smell the same amount of sugar in a million gallons of water.

Brain Capacity

The dog also has an incredible brain development system that analyzes smells. Coupled with a super memory bank and a large brain capacity, dogs can connect individual scents to specific situations, informing them how to act when they smell the odor.

Can Dogs Smell Vape Pens in Vacuum Seals?

Many people still wonder: how can drug-sniffing dogs smell marijuana vape pens? The answer to that involves more than their incredible ability to smell and their training. It also depends on the form of storage you use to carry your vape pen.

Dogs can smell vape even when the scent is disguised and masked, and packed in airtight containers. There are two main reasons that they can smell the vape:

- The vape is concealed in a plastic container. Plastics are not so good when it comes to sealing in the air. They have microscopic holes that allow scents to seep through the bags. No matter how tightly you seal a plastic bag, even in a vacuum, the smell will find a way to leak, and even the faintest of scents is enough to alert a trained dog.

- Scents contaminate other items. Since dogs can smell minuscule amounts of scent, they can detect it even after you think the smell is fading. So, when packaging your vape pens and storing them in vacuum-sealed bags, and handling the outside, your hands will come into contact with the smell. No matter how many times you wash your hands after, the scent will still linger and leave traces that dogs can still detect.

The vape and pen elements can also come into contact with the outside of the storage container. This means that even if you used a sealed container that does not let the air out, as long as the scent touched the exterior, a drug dog would be able to sniff it.

How to Conceal a Vape Pen and Cartridge from a Sniffer Dog

Now that we know the answer to the question, “How can drug-sniffing dogs smell marijuana vape pens?” let us look at how you can conceal a vape pen and cartridge from a sniffer dog.

Dogs' sense of smell works by sniffing the scents around them, but how can they smell when there is no scent? You can hide the smell of your vape pen by using airtight glass containers. Unlike plastic, glass containers are not porous and will not let any odor escape.

Glass airtight containers are the Achilles heels of most dogs. You need to make sure that your container is genuinely airtight and no odors can escape. Since the containers are vacuum sealed, no air will escape. If no air escapes, then no odor will escape, and the dog will not be able to sniff anything.

However, the drawback to this solution comes in the handling of the vape pens and how to get them into the container. Handling the container will leave the scent in your hands and on the outside of the container, and dogs will still be able to sniff it. To conceal the smell from a trained dog, you might need to get someone else to package it for you. The vape pen will still come into contact with the outside of the container and leave a scent regardless.

Conclusion

So, can dogs smell vape pens? Yes, they can. Is there a way to hide vape pens away from drug-sniffing dogs? Yes, there is, but no foolproof method is yet to come to light. Should you be worried? Yes, but only to a degree. Remember, a drug-sniffing dog can only smell your vape pen if it has been trained to detect a specific scent.

You will need to be careful no matter what you do since you cannot know whether a drug dog is trained to smell for which strains or juices, so you cannot judge from afar. Take care when carrying vape pens near drug dogs because chances are, no matter how many precautions you take, the dog will still be able to smell it.

VAPE JUICES

VAPE HARDWARE & DISPOSABLES

TOP PAGES

#education