see also: in March 2007 News Releases:   SBInet Completes Test of First Mobile Sensor Tower   Nogales Border Patrol Seizes 6 Tons of Marijuana from Garbage Truck   El Paso CBP Officers Make Largest Drug Bust In 2 Years   CBP Seizes $709,291 in Undeclared Currency at Laredo Port of Entry   Border Patrol Seizes $13 Million in Cocaine Near Hidalgo, Texas   El Paso CBP Offers Tips For Quick, Safe Easter Holiday Border Crossings   Border Patrol Assists Man Bitten by Snake ...more on cbp.gov:   CBP News Releases   Press Officers

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Washington, D.C. – U. S Customs and Border Protection announce today the first Dutch Shepherd litter born at the Canine Training Center in Front Royal, Va.

Nine new arrivals graced the kennels on February 26, as six females and three males were born to “Rusa,” an explosive-detection dog stationed at the canine center in Front Royal. It is the program’s first Dutch Shepherd to be bred at the center, and the 26th litter since the detector dog breeding Program’s inception in 1998.

“CBP’s Canine Enforcement Program is protecting America with the largest and most diverse law enforcement canine program in the country,” said Thomas J. Walters, CBP assistant commissioner for training and development. “The detection capability of these animals is exemplary. They can screen a vehicle in seconds and perform a thorough exam in minutes, saving CBP officers and agents time, money and resources.”

The puppies born will be called the “Z” litter, meaning all the puppies will be named starting with the letter Z.

To date the program has produced 192 puppies out of 26 litters conceived. The first 25 litters were Labrador Retrievers.

The center continues to utilize other breeds of working dogs as well, including German Shepherds and the Belgian Malinois. The center’s working dogs need to possess a strong retrieval drive as well as confidence in unfamiliar environments and the Dutch Shepherds fit those criteria. All breeds continue to play an integral part in CBP’s goal to maximize the number of dogs suitable for detection training in the areas of narcotics, unreported currency, explosives, concealed humans and agriculture products.

“The CBP Canine Training Center in Front Royal, Va. supplements the procurement of high-quality canines with puppies such as these in the “Z” litter to support our traditional mission of narcotic interdiction, but as an additional means of protecting our country from terrorists at our borders and checkpoints,” Walters said.

For more information about the CBP Canine Enforcement Program, please visit our Web site on cbp.gov.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection is the unified border agency within the Department of Homeland Security charged with the management, control and protection of our nation's borders at and between the official ports of entry. CBP is charged with keeping terrorists and terrorist weapons out of the country while enforcing hundreds of U.S. laws.