A robot dog issuing COVID-19 safety instructions is roaming the streets of locked down Shanghai

• A robot dog is barking COVID-19 safety measures is roaming the streets in Shanghai, China.
• The robodog tells residents to "wear a mask, wash hands frequently, and check your temperature."

A robot dog is being used to bark COVID-19 safety measures in Shanghai, China.

With a loudspeaker strapped to its back, the robodog tells residents in the city's Jiading district to "wear a mask, wash hands frequently, and check your temperature," amid COVID-19 restrictions, The Times report.

—Jay in Shanghai (@JayinShanghai) March 29, 2022

The Times report that the video originates from state-controlled media The Paper.

Since the end of March, Shanghai has been in lockdown following a COVID-19 spike driven by the new BA.2 variant.

Drones have also been reportedly used by authorities to enforce a strict COVID-19 lockdown regime. A video shared on social media showed a drone flying over a Shanghai park telling people through a loudspeaker, "Please go home immediately, or you will be punished in accordance with the law," reported The Times.

The city of 26 million people is divided into two, with the eastern and western regions seeing slightly different lockdowns measures.

One rule is that pets of COVID-19 patients in Shanghai must be destroyed.

Reuters has reported that most Shanghai residents are now being told not to leave their houses, even to take out the trash.

On April 2, officials requested that all Shanghai residents take two more COVID-19 tests, according to Reuters.

Wu Qianyu, an official at the Shanghai municipal health commission, said the situation with COVID-19 was "severe and complex," saying that "the task of prevention and control is extremely arduous."

On April 3, Shanghai reported 7,788 daily locally transmitted asymptomatic cases and 438 symptomatic cases.

Reuters reports that the total number of cases across mainland China is 11,781, asymptomatic cases 1,506 symptomatic cases, meaning Shanghai makes up 62% of the total cases across the country.