Dubai-based relocation specialist Move One Inc. has been providing international relocation services since 1992 and boasts many top organisations among its clients.

For lots of families one of the most worrying things about moving to a new country is transporting their pet, whether it’s a dog or cat or something more exotic.  Move One has the expertise to make sure the treasured family pet arrives safely in his new home - but not all their four-legged customers are civilians.

In recent years the company has seen a big increase in the number of working dogs being shipped to and from countries such as Iraq and Afghanistan by security companies and the military. The working dogs are treated just like human soldiers in many respects. They have passports and medical certificates and complete tours of duty like anyone else in the military.

“Handling 30 or 40 large dogs – most are German Shepherds – who have just come off a nine-month tour can have its problems,” said Move One Director Curt Sharp. “Recently we had a consignment of dogs to ship from Iraq to Houston Texas via Dubai. They travelled from their base to the local airport in an air-conditioned bus, but when they arrived there was no air conditioning in the cargo area.  Iraq has extreme high temperatures and animals are particularly vulnerable to overheating.  Fortunately the Move One handlers were able to respond immediately and brought in large fans to keep them cool until they went aboard the aircraft.”

Making sure the dogs are caged and secured correctly is a vital part of the operation and must be done with great care to avoid accidents during the flight. Choosing the correct food – Move One uses a special high-protein dry variety – and making sure enough water is provided are also very important for the welfare of the animals.

As the military presence is scaled back in Iraq and Afghanistan, Move One has seen an increase in business from private security companies bringing in dogs from overseas. In other countries where there is unrest, wealthy families are using dogs to protect their property and the US and the United Kingdom are two of the major distributors of dogs trained for that purpose. Yemen, Bahrain and Saudi Arabia are some of the rapidly developing markets for security dogs and their handlers and Move One is ideally placed to ship them wherever in the world they are needed.