THE United Nations is normally the organisation handing out the assistance, rather than asking for it.

But for one Pembrokeshire dog handler, when the call came to help out the UN, he jumped at the chance.

Stuart Phillips, is the director of Llandissilio based B.W.Y Canine Ltd, a small but highly specialist company, training specialist search dogs.

Earlier this year the UN contacted Stuart and asked him to attend a three day workshop in Copenhagen, Denmark, to advise on best practices used with explosive detection dogs and the associated quality management system used by the UN.

The UN Peace and Security Cluster helps the UN and its partners provide peace and security, humanitarian and development solutions in many areas around the world, including the provision of search dogs trained to find explosives.

The UN currently has 194 dogs working in 18 field locations around the world, including Syria, Somalia, South Sudan and Mali.

Stuart said: “To be invited to this workshop was a huge privilege for me as I’m just a dog trainer from a small Pembrokeshire company.

"I spent three days in a room with some of the best dog instructors in the world and other UN professionals, discussing the use of explosive detection dogs. I was the only representative from Wales, so I was very proud to be there and I’ve now made links with fellow dog professionals from the United States Government, Dutch Customs, Polish Military and Swiss Police, to name a few.

"Explosive detection dogs carry out such important work around the world and here in the UK I provide search dog services to a number of clients to look for explosives to ensure staff, visitors and the public are safe prior to events, sporting fixtures and large gatherings”.

B.W.Y Canine Ltd train dogs to find a number of items including explosives, firearms, drugs, cash and tobacco.

In the last six years sniffer dogs trained in Pembrokeshire have located over £12m of illegal tobacco with Trading Standards and Customs teams across the UK.