New recruits take guard

Bahrain Customs Directorate’s latest recruits are shaking the British rain from their fur and adjusting to the kingdom’s searing 45-degree summer heat.

Seven new sniffer dog recruits arrived from the UK this week to join 12 other crime-busting canines currently patrolling the King Fahd Causeway.
As exclusively reported in GulfWeekly, the dogs are part of tough new security measures taken to stem the tide of prohibited goods entering the country.
The dogs – Springer Spaniels, Labradors, Cocker Spaniels and German Pointers – are currently searching cargo vehicles and will soon expand to passenger vehicles. 
The sophisticated noses of the dogs can detect drugs, explosives and weapons.
“They’re doing really well and they’ve settled in quite quickly,” said Marcel Bonnefin, managing director of Top Dog Security, the security bomb dog detection unit responsible for bringing the mutts to Bahrain.
“The new dogs are part-trained and we’ll be training them up over the next couple of weeks,” he added.
For the new recruits it was straight down to business and training and exercises have already started at the King Fahd Causeway inspection area. As well as training Bahrain’s four-legged line of defence, Top Dog staff are also helping Bahraini customs officers to become dog handlers, and two are already on the job.
 “I’m really enjoying it,” said customs officer Raed Abdulrahman, “it’s my hobby and my duty and I can do both together. I have a two-year-old drugs dog called Sasha and she’s doing great.”
Muhammad Salman, who has been a customs officer for 26 years, said: “Training is going well. People will now think twice before trying to bring illegal goods over the causeway.”
Over the next 12 months, 16 more customs officers will be assisted to become expert handlers.
Since their arrival early last month, the dogs have also done spot checks at Bahrain’s ports and airports where they will eventually be used to fight smuggling.
“We’re doing well and we need to stay dogged and determined to succeed,” said Mr Bonnefin.

By -RdS-
editor@gulfweekly.com