MIAMI Business of detecting mold has literally gone to the dogs

The dogs sniff out mold in homes.
KNIGHT RIDDER NEWSPAPERS
Jack Jacobs and his fianc & eacute;e thought they'd found their dream house -- an old mansion in Miami's Morningside area, but they didn't like the look of a mildew patch on a ceiling, the roof that leaked during heavy rain and the moldy edges around the kitchen cabinets.
So they called in the dogs -- Mold Dogs, to be exact.
Tootsie and Snickers, who belong to the Mold Detection Service of Miami, quickly sniffed out the fungus that had riddled floorboards, walls and ceilings. Jacobs backed out of the contract in a hurry.
"We were very much into getting this house," said the Miami Shores kitchen wholesaler. "But it was unhealthy. There were two rooms that were off the charts. They were unlivable."
Demand rises
This pair of beagles and their mold-sensitive snouts are in increasing demand, say their owners David and Jennifer Leshner, siblings who started Mold Detection Service in January out of, well, puppy love.
"Being dog lovers, we'd been looking for a business with dogs -- a pet store, dog walkers, anything," related 32-year-old David Leshner, a former investment portfolio manager.
But it was an Animal Planet show about the 20-year-old European tradition of using dogs to root out mold that caught Leshner's attention.
After researching the idea, he and his sister, a 29-year-old lawyer, threw their careers to the dogs and ordered two pooches trained in mold detection from the Florida Canine Academy in Tampa for $15,000 each. They also got themselves certified as mold inspectors.
With the American Society of Home Inspectors estimating that 38 percent of U.S. houses harbor mold, mold detection is turning into a big business across the country as homeowners are becoming increasingly aware of fungi and their ill effects.
Mold, which is caused by damp conditions and can grow in as little as 24 hours, is commonly linked to allergies and respiratory ailments.
The strain known as toxic or black mold has been blamed for more serious illnesses ranging from bleeding lungs to reduced cognitive skills and even death. Children, the elderly and people with low immunity are especially vulnerable.
But many in the construction and insurance industries, which are being hit with thousands of mold-related lawsuits and claims, say there is little scientific evidence to support the allegations of noxious health effects. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control is conducting a study designed to end the debate.
What is more commonly accepted is mold's destruction of buildings. The microbes particularly feast on drywall and more absorbent building materials, which makes new homes susceptible as well as old.
With its high humidity and booming real estate development, South Florida is a prime climate for mold, and mold hunting. "It's a perfect place to open this business," David Leshner said.
How the dogs work
When David Leshner gives the command "seek," the dogs start sniffing around the room. They're trained to reveal 18 types of mold. At "show me," they point with their noses, often in a nodding motion, to the location where they have detected the fungi. If it's in the floor, they sit on the spot.
After the dogs have signaled the location of the mold, the inspector takes an air sample by inserting a tube inside an electrical outlet, air vent or other opening. The tube is attached to a pump to pull the air into a trap that is later sent to a lab for testing.
So far, David Leshner said, the dogs have never failed. "You can't hide mold from them," he noted.
Other detection methods involve cutting out pieces of wall for testing, which can be costly, slow, not very accurate -- and can even spread mold by exposing spores to the air, David Leshner said.
Mold Detection Service charges by the square foot; a 1,000-square-foot apartment would typically cost $250, plus lab costs.