Do coast guard / customs use sniffer dogs when searching yachts?

[Craig Cape Town]

Dude! I can smell you from here.

[Be Free]

What I smell is a troll

[JPA Cate]

We have had a German trained Customs dog brought aboard our 36 ft. boat in New Caledonia. It was a very sad situation for the poor dog. He was a large Alsatian, and had to be carried below, where he didn't have enough room to turn around. They'd have been better off with a Beagle, but they had what they had. The claws are hard on varnished cabin soles. Stress makes them shed a lot. If I am asked again, I will tell the story to the Customs person. It is that they are welcome to search. Their country, their rules. USCG is allowed to inspect any US boat at sea. I don't know if they use sniffer dogs.

Using illegal substances is a personal dietary choice. Consequences can include confiscation of the boat and being put in jail in a country that doesn't speak the same language. OP's choice about how to handle the situation. And, if facing withdrawal, perhaps a long term solution to what has now become a problem. If you leave, then re-enter the US, it is the US Customs dogs that would sniff. They also have wipes that detect some of the illegal drugs. Federal law supersedes State law in the US.

Ann

On a side note, the Beagle in the airport sat down next to Jim's backpack. The officer queried him about drugs. He said, "never". The next question was "have you ever carried meat in your pack?" "Countless times", he said. Mystery solved. The dogs are only and always, canine, and we all like our tucker!

[Fore and Aft]

Could that be considered cruising on a fiver a day if you're locked up in the local jail? Your boats being looked after and you're getting free bed and board. Plus there's bound to be a free airline ticket home once your sentence is complete.
What I love about stoners is the lack of reality about what they are actually asking. Even saying it's for personal use is not going to cut it here in Australia.
Cheers

https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.abc...icle/100505256

[Chotu]

The actual answer to this question without judgment, just out of practical purposes, is to procure whatever drugs you need once you are in the other country. Never transport these things.

I have known enough people with mental health issues that smoke because it keeps them from feeling awful all day. I get it. Some people need it. And the medications don’t always work. It seems that universally, smoking does work for most of these people. also, some people only have problems once in a while and don’t want to take a drug 24 seven 365 combat occasional mental health issues.

so just get it wherever you go. Take the risk there. Much better risk than transporting the stuff.

I was recently in Thailand. The penalties are extremely severe for transporting drugs there. I saw some Australians that were still in the Bangkok Hilton. The smugglers up by Myanmar? That use the river and Cambodia? They just shoot them on site. No trial. No arrest. They just kill them. Same with the Philippines. So be careful.

[Allied39]

Troll or dopey stoner, who cares.....and why buy into it?

Rhetorical question by the way.

[Cwens]

Originally Posted by Shrew

As an added bonus you've now posted on the worlds most popular cruising site that there is an individual named "Chris" with a last name beginning with "W" sailing a Hinckley Sou'wester 42 through the Caribbean who is possibly smuggling contraband.

Nice piece of work.

Alternatively, the brand new account does not actually belong to said "Chris W," owner of the Sou'wester 42, and was instead set up by someone who wishes Chris W some kind of harm.

[ItDepends]

Originally Posted by ChrisOwens

Alternatively, the brand new account does not actually belong to said "Chris W," owner of the Sou'wester 42, and was instead set up by someone who wishes Chris W some kind of harm.

This is scary--and not at all unlikely since the OP hasn't even logged back in since posting the original message.

Kind of the nautical version of swatting.

Maybe the Moderators can take down the whole thread?

[RaymondR]

Years ago I was on a trans continental flight to Western Australia. Whilst waiting for my luggage I was talking to the lady who had been seated beside me. A beautiful little beagle sat down in front of us and cocked it's little head to the side making an exceptionally cute picture.

The uniformed officer instructed us to move apart please and the dog relocated itself in front of the lady. The officers next utterance was "Do you have any fruit in your handbag madam" her reply "No officer" his response "Would you mind opening the handbag so that I can see" she opened the bag and removed a packet of Fruit Jube candies.

The damned dog had smelled the candy in her bag from 20' away (They have an aversion to fruit flies, sparrow birds, and pregnancy testing toads in Western Australia)

[Uncle Bob]

Originally Posted by RaymondR

Years ago I was on a trans continental flight to Western Australia. Whilst waiting for my luggage I was talking to the lady who had been seated beside me. A beautiful little beagle sat down in front of us and cocked it's little head to the side making an exceptionally cute picture.

The uniformed officer instructed us to move apart please and the dog relocated itself in front of the lady. The officers next utterance was "Do you have any fruit in your handbag madam" her reply "No officer" his response "Would you mind opening the handbag so that I can see" she opened the bag and removed a packet of Fruit Jube candies.

The damned dog had smelled the candy in her bag from 20' away (They have an aversion to fruit flies, sparrow birds, and pregnancy testing toads in Western Australia)

As an ex quarantine inspector (only for a few years, I developed an aversion to bureaucrats) I can tell you that those cute little beagles have the most amazing noses but they can have the most painful temperaments as well.

[Manateeman]

The manatee crew seconds the motion to remove the thread.
Anyone else?

[MicHughV]

As a final note. In the 35 odd years I've been afloat, I can't recall a time, when I've ever met another sailor into recreational drugs.
The ocean should be a sailor's drug of choice.

You get another hand up from me.

[CaptTom]

Personally, I'm still interested in hearing about real interactions with drug-sniffing dogs on routine boardings.

As more and more US states relax the rules, we're all more likely to encounter a passenger who wants to bring their "medicinals" along. For now I would just tell them the feds can impound the boat if they find it. But honestly, I don't know if anyone in LE really cares any more. At what point should I stop worrying?

[Chotu]

Originally Posted by CaptTom

Personally, I'm still interested in hearing about real interactions with drug-sniffing dogs on routine boardings.

As more and more US states relax the rules, we're all more likely to encounter a passenger who wants to bring their "medicinals" along. For now I would just tell them the feds can impound the boat if they find it. But honestly, I don't know if anyone in LE really cares any more. At what point should I stop worrying?

Same here.

[nuru05]

Originally Posted by Franziska

Is this stuff so important to you that you are willing to risk losing your yacht and perhaps lifestyle?

Yachts have been completely dismantled on the suspicion of having drugs onboard.
If they find a little, they will look for more.

Life is all about taking choices.

Obviously it’s not worth the risk, but I was told by someone that a documented vessel cannot be seized by another country. Is there any truth to this?