The dogs, cadaver odour, cross contamination etc...

[sadie]

How often?
Were they both pathologists then?
Did they work in civvies while dealing with corpses? (unusual one would have thought).

When my son died, two doctors came in their ordinary clothes to certify that he was dead.

Must happen all the time.

[Carana]

CC was washed on 12 July. Weeks before the dogs arrived on 30 July.

"Today I washed the Cuddle Cat. I was hoping not to have to do it until Madeleine returns, but it was now quite dirty and smelly, unfortunately without the smell of Madeleine on it. xx”

Thanks, I was trying to find that reference.

IMO, there is still a fairly simple reason why Eddie may have reacted to CC.

Although he was given a tennis ball as a reward when he was a "big boy", was he given toys when he was a puppy or not? If so, that might possibly explain playing with it, but not why he didn't alert to it at the time. That's just a question.

A potential reason for his later reaction could be that although Kate had washed it, skin cells and sweat from her carrying it around with her for two months in summer would have built up a smell of decomposition deep inside the fibres of this porous toy.

[Anna]

How often?
Were they both pathologists then?
Did they work in civvies while dealing with corpses? (unusual one would have thought).

Yes. a GP would come out to a death in their normal clothing to certify the death.
I know this because I have called a doctor out to a death many times.
If the GP decided that it was a sudden death, the police in uniform and coroner would attend.
........................................................................................
Gerry worked in a hospital where they probably wore gowns to deal with bodies, but when he took the gown off and touched his clothing underneath? or shook hands with a surgeon and wiped his hands on his clothing? Many probabilities of cross contamination IMO.
...................................................................................................
Also Kate would deal with the bereaved, who again would probably have been in close contact with a corpse (cross contamination)..............So many possibilities.
If you work in the medical profession and in some cases police force, there is a fair chance that you carry the scent of death, which can be detected by these VR dogs, despite laundry.

[Eleanor]

There are so many variables that it is hard to tell what from what.

For how long had any corpse been dead?
How many stages of decomposition are there?
What leaks first?
In the presence of a corpse, not all that difficult to define the difference.  But in the absence of a corpse, pretty nigh on impossible, I would think.
And I'm afraid that I don't believe that it is impossible to wash out the scent, depending on the variables, of course.

[Anna]

There are so many variables that it is hard to tell what from what.

For how long had any corpse been dead?
How many stages of decomposition are there?
What leaks first?
In the presence of a corpse, not all that difficult to define the difference.  But in the absence of a corpse, pretty nigh on impossible, I would think.
And I'm afraid that I don't believe that it is impossible to wash out the scent, depending on the variables, of course.

It takes about 3 hours for the scent of a corpse to be detectable.
The washing thing is debateable, or if true, anyone who has slept on hospital or Nursing home, sheets(all going to the same laundry) would probably have the scent transferred to their nightwear, clothing etc. It goes on and on. If washing doesn't remove the scent.............Then I guess most of us must be walking about with it  >@@(*&)
I don't believe that a scent of death from Madeleine was found in 5A, so its anyone's guess what the dog alerted too!
  I don't think it was CC that the dog alerted too, according to the video, but something on top of the cupboard

 

[Carana]

It takes about 3 hours for the scent of a corpse to be detectable.
The washing thing is debateable, or if true, anyone who has slept on hospital or Nursing home, sheets(all going to the same laundry) would probably have the scent transferred to their nightwear, clothing etc. It goes on and on. If washing doesn't remove the scent.............Then I guess most of us must be walking about with it  >@@(*&)
I don't believe that a scent of death from Madeleine was found in 5A, so its anyone's guess what the dog alerted too!
  I don't think it was CC that the dog alerted too, according to the video, but something on top of the cupboard

I'd be curious to know if he would have reacted to one of the old-style plaster casts or not (or even one of the newer washable ones)... Individually, the dog would presumably not react to shed skin cells (which make up a large proportion of household dust in everyday life), nor to sweat. However, combine the two together in anaerobic conditions and there would presumably be some form of smelly decomp.

[Carana]

I'm not sure that it can be excluded, but I do agree that it isn't clear what exactly he reacted to. He's supposed to react to the most concentrated part of the scent cone, which may not be exactly where the object actually is, depending on air circulation.

Even so, why on earth he didn't react to it when he was in direct contact with prior to it being hidden remains a mystery, as does the fact that he passed by the cupboard door several times without reacting, and then only reacted after sniffing the top of the buffet where those other objects were (whether they were clothes or papers or whatever).

[stephen25000]

When my son died, two doctors came in their ordinary clothes to certify that he was dead.

Must happen all the time.

No, you don't need two doctors to certify death, one is sufficient.

...and ordinary clothes.

 Wow. >@@(*&)

[slartibartfast]

So you are suggesting that doctors are less bothered with hygiene around corpses?

[pathfinder73]

It takes about 3 hours for the scent of a corpse to be detectable.
The washing thing is debateable, or if true, anyone who has slept on hospital or Nursing home, sheets(all going to the same laundry) would probably have the scent transferred to their nightwear, clothing etc. It goes on and on. If washing doesn't remove the scent.............Then I guess most of us must be walking about with it  >@@(*&)
I don't believe that a scent of death from Madeleine was found in 5A, so its anyone's guess what the dog alerted too!
  I don't think it was CC that the dog alerted too, according to the video, but something on top of the cupboard

Only 1 hour for Eddie to alert in the bedroom re Attracta Harron case.

Northern Ireland, UK
 A missing person, last seen returning from church, on foot, in N. Ireland. The search of suspects 'burnt out vehicle' by forensic scientists did not reveal any evidence. A search by the E.V.R.D. identified a position in the rear passenger foot well where the dog alerted to the presence of human material. A sample was taken and when analysed revealed the victims' DNA. The enquiry then concentrated its efforts on the suspect and the E.V.R.D. located the body of the woman in a river bank deposition site. Further searches identified a location where the E.V.R.D. alerted in the front bedroom of the offenders empty next door dwelling house. When interviewed the suspect admitted that the body had lain in the room for 1 hour prior to disposal. Forensic teams were unable to extract any forensic evidence despite being shown the exact position.

[Alfred R Jones]

So you are suggesting that doctors are less bothered with hygiene around corpses?

Why would you say that?? Does washing one's hands after touching a corpse, or washing one's clothes after coming into contact with a corpses eradicate all cadaver odour can you tell me?

[Alice Purjorick]

When my son died, two doctors came in their ordinary clothes to certify that he was dead.

Must happen all the time.

Refresh my memory,Goody Sadie, where else did the dogs alert?
How many in the party were in the medical profession?
The poor little doggies must have been beside themselves with joy at all the scent of cadaverine et al and all the rewards they could expect from alerting.

[ferryman]

Refresh my memory,Goody Sadie, where else did the dogs alert?
How many in the party were in the medical profession?
The poor little doggies must have been beside themselves with joy at all the scent of cadaverine et al and all the rewards they could expect from alerting.

We have been through this countless times.

But where else aside from those places or things associated with the McCanns did Eddie spend even a minute fraction of the time he spent in those places or things directly associated with the McCanns?

How much encouragement did Eddie need before each alert?

What influence or bearing did those findMadeleine stickers have on Grime's direction of the dog in the search of vehicles?

These are all the relevant questions ...

[Alice Purjorick]

We have been through this countless times.

But where else aside from those places or things associated with the McCanns did Eddie spend even a minute fraction of the time he spent in those places or things directly associated with the McCanns?

How much encouragement did Eddie need before each alert?

What influence or bearing did those findMadeleine stickers have on Grime's direction of the dog in the search of vehicles?

These are all the relevant questions ...

I would have thought dear Charon that a relevant question was "did the dogs alert to anything that other doctors in the group had worn or handled whilst in their apartments" if the dogs did not alert that would raise interesting questions of the validity of "Oh well they doctors and always in contact with corpses QED" argument do you not think?

[Alfred R Jones]

I would have thought dear Charon that a relevant question was "did the dogs alert to anything that other doctors in the group had worn or handled whilst in their apartments" if the dogs did not alert that would raise interesting questions of the validity of "Oh well they doctors and always in contact with corpses QED" argument do you not think?

When dogs plural alert it is to signify the presence of blood, in minute traces.  The dogs plural did not alert anywhere else apart from to McCann-related property and places so perhaps this indicates that only the McCanns contain blood, and the rest of their friends and the population of PdL are all androids, containing battery acid only.  Surely that's plausible isn't it?