As well as costing the UK government billions of pounds every year, the illegal tobacco trade can take business away from legitimate vendors and act as a money stream for criminal gangs.
Whether tobacco products are being sold illegally or are counterfeit and do not comply with the UK safety standards, tobacco sniffer dogs can play a large part in assisting the fight against the trade of illegal tobacco goods.
Our tobacco sniffer dogs are trained to detect both real and counterfeit tobacco. This means they can detect products that are being trafficked or sold in local shops, as well as cigarettes that have been smuggled into locations where they are not permitted, such as hospital and healthcare environments.
We can deploy our tobacco detection dogs and their expert handlers to locations across the UK. Due to our extensive experience, we are trusted by the police, preventative organisations and private businesses to provide a professional solution.
Using our tobacco dogs:
Our tobacco sniffer dogs operate nationwide and can search:
A dog’s nose has up to 300 million olfactory receptors – we have up to six million – so scientists estimate that a dog’s sense of smell can be between 10,000 to 100,000 times more powerful than ours. Once trained, they can detect tobacco, whether real or fake, extremely accurately, even if it is hidden behind a wall or under a floor. In the fight against the illegal tobacco business, dogs are proven to be more efficient than human search teams.
Training is based on scent. Using real and counterfeit tobacco products, and their favourite ball or toy, the tobacco detection dogs are taught to ‘sniff’ out the tobacco products. The use of toys helps the dog to see it as a game, so they enjoy what they do.
There is no guarantee that fake tobacco products comply with the UK safety standards that licensed sellers must adhere to. Such products may include extremely dangerous ingredients that can easily cause a fire, even if the user thinks they have stubbed a cigarette out, and can also cause increased harm to the smoker.
Our detection dogs are highly trained to detect illegal Class A and Class B substances in any location across the UK.
Our tobacco detection dogs are trained to detect real and fake tobacco and search for contraband, which helps fight the illegal tobacco trade.
From crowd control to premises protection, we have dog and handlers teams available to provide a canine patrol service nationwide.
We are proud to be an associate company member of the National Association of Security Dog Users (NASDU).
NASDU promotes high standards, excellent training and ongoing education in the private security dog sector. We abide by the guidance & recommendations contained within British Standard 8517-1 for General Purpose Dogs & BS8517-2 for Detection Dogs. All our handlers are NASDU certified.
This British Standard sets the standard for screening security personnel working in an environment where safety of people, goods or property is essential.
It includes data security, sensitive and service contracts and confidential records.
Our dog handlers hold Security Industry Authority (SIA) licences.
The SIA is a statutory organisation that is responsible for regulating the private security industry in the UK.
All our handlers have undergone a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check, which searches for criminal records and activity.
As we regularly provide services to the education and healthcare sectors, the enhanced check shows that our handlers are suitable to work with children and vulnerable adults.
