Antisocial behaviour can be extremely damaging to a commercial organisation in terms of physical and visible damage, but also in terms of reputational damage. Antisocial behaviour can include:
- Noise – music, shouting, revving cars
- Abuse and intimidation of employees or innocent passers-by
- Drinking and drug-taking
- Vandalism
- Fighting
- Dangerous, uncontrollable dogs
Instances such as these are not necessarily carried out by one single demographic, but they are often groups of young people with nowhere else to go, who target quiet or vacant properties overnight or at weekends. This can include commercial premises out-of-hours and hence, if a location starts to have a reputation for antisocial behaviour it can be extremely damaging for the public profile and perception of that business. In addition to instances of vandalism and theft, antisocial behaviour can be a trigger for a business sourcing additional forms of security.
Mobile patrols and CCTV are common forms of security measures implemented in these circumstances, but can be considered insufficient or expensive. In such cases dog security is an ideal solution, so to answer the question: can security dogs help stop antisocial behaviour? The answer is an emphatic yes!
How security dogs help stop antisocial behaviour
It is important to understand that dog security is a team consisting of a security dog and its handler. They are both trained in various disciplines, but in terms of antisocial behaviour they can use these skills to diffuse difficult situations, and where necessary manage site evictions. Dogs are immediately a threatening presence and act as a useful deterrent, particularly where regular gatherings of people become aware that dog security is regularly patrolling a site and that they are being watched.
Dog security can provide many different services, but for antisocial behaviour:
- The dog is trained to remain calm and react only when necessary
- The dog is an immediate visual threat
- The dog can chase and apprehend a person much quicker than its handler in circumstances where this is necessary
- The handler is trained to communicate with people to diffuse the situation
- The handler is conversant with the relevant laws and knows what procedures to follow to lawfully disperse people or escalate a situation.
- The handler can very quickly pick-up on the characteristics of a location and the individual requirements of a business, and which can be incorporated into how a situation is approached and managed.
It is very common to use dog security to manage situations of antisocial behaviour, such as this recent example in an Aberdeen shopping centre. This is a commercial property that is open outside standard office hours, but is a place of quiet refuge for groups of young people, and hence is a good example of many locations where antisocial behaviour can very quickly develop.
Professional dog security solutions for antisocial behaviour
There are many examples of antisocial behaviour around the UK every day, many of them don’t get reported to police because they do not warrant it, but as a commercial business owner you still have the right to employ specialist security services to manage these situations and to disperse or control people causing antisocial behaviour, but always in a lawful manner. This is why the ideal solution is always to employ dog security when tackling antisocial behaviour, because it is an effective deterrent and can deal with the problem following the correct legal protocol.
At React K9 we have resources stationed throughout the UK and available to react to your needs for managing antisocial behaviour. We have SIA-licenced and NASDU-accredited teams of dogs and handlers ready to provide you with a professional and effective service to monitor and control issues with antisocial behaviour, so get in touch with our team today.
