The presence of sniffer dogs at music festivals could increase the risk of drug overdoses, according to a new study.
Research conducted by RMIT University has found that sniffer dogs at events and surrounding areas, such as train stations to and from venues, encourages punters to "adapt their drug consumption, often with harmful consequences”, such as taking drugs faster or in higher quantities.
The study also found that searches by police looking for illegal substances had the potential to cause lasting trauma, including anxiety and distress.
“People told us that when they realised there were dogs and police monitoring event queues they took all their drugs at once to avoid detection,” Lead researcher Peta Malins.
“The implications of being stopped and searched by police go beyond short-term public humiliation. People found the experience highly distressing and reported feeling disempowered and de-humanised.”
Malins said sniffer dogs at festivals should be “immediately discontinued”, “given that general drug detection dog operations are not working and are instead producing a range of harms including increased risks of overdose, stigma and trauma.”
“The important goal of preventing overdose fatalities in such settings would be far better served by putting resources into evidence-based, non-judgmental and non-threatening harm reduction interventions such as in-situ peer education and pill-testing.”
The research follows positive results from the latest pill testing trial at Groovin The Moo festival last weekend.
