Reuters

An estimated 75,000 people died from synthetic opioid overdoses in 2023, mostly involving fentanyl, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.The vast majority of CBP fentanyl seizures occur at legal border crossings in Arizona and California and involve canines, according to CBP data provided to Reuters. Most convicted fentanyl traffickers in recent years have been U.S. citizens, U.S. Sentencing Commission figures show.President Joe Biden, a Democrat running for another term in Nov. 5 elections, has called on Republicans in Congress to increase funding for border security, including counter-fentanyl efforts at legal border crossings. CBP officials say the funding could help expand the use of canines, which includes a pilot program that has trained six dogs to smell for &quot;precursor&quot; chemicals used to make fentanyl.Sidney Aki, the CBP field office director for the San Diego area, worked as a canine handler at the start of his career in the 1990s. Speaking to Reuters at the San Ysidro port of entry in late May, he said the dogs worked in conjunction with scanners and data analytics to root out fentanyl and other contraband.&quot;Of course, if we had more canines, if we had more personnel partnered up with canines, we would continue to do more and more,&quot; he said.At CBP&rsquo;s canine training facility in Front Royal, Virginia, customs officers from around the country are paired with their new four-legged partners, part of a four- to six-month process to teach the dogs to seek out contraband.The drug-sniffing dogs are trained to detect six substances: marijuana, cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine, ecstasy and fentanyl, initially by filling chew toys with &quot;pseudo-narcotics&quot; that smell like the actual drug.The center - located on a picturesque 300-acre property in the Shenandoah River Valley - has training areas that simulate what will become the dogs&rsquo; real-world work environments, including an airport baggage screening room, mail room conveyor belt and an outdoor parking lot with dozens of dusty cars.The dogs tend to be German Shepherds, Labradors, Dutch Shepherds and German Shorthaired Pointers, Sifford said. Goose is one of three Golden Retrievers in service.Most come from breeders in Europe, mainly Germany and the Czech Republic, while a smaller portion are American. They cost on average $11,000-$12,000 per dog and tend to retire when they reach age 8 or 9, she said.While other hard drugs can have distinct scents - heroin sometimes smells like vinegar, for instance - fentanyl is usually odorless, at least to humans.Dogs can learn to detect a new scent in three days on average, Sifford said, but before CBP could start training on fentanyl, the agency needed to develop safety protocols. Trainers always carry four doses of the opioid overdose drug Naloxone - which can also be administered to dogs - although they have not yet needed it, she said.CBP has heard from authorities in other countries who want to learn about the fentanyl training techniques, including from recent outreach from Argentina and France, Sifford said. They have also had requests from U.S. states and localities.Sifford acknowledges the work can be challenging for dogs at the border who have to deal with seasonally high temperatures, long work days and the stress of navigating traffic but said the work matches their breeding and temperament.Dogs have a sense of smell that is exponentially more powerful than humans with up to 200 times more olfactory receptors, according to a 2022 study published in the peer-reviewed Journal of Neuroscience.Dogs can rapidly sweep through vehicle traffic, search suspicious cars and check lines of passengers. They are particularly useful for uncovering fentanyl, which can be moved in small quantities as pills or powder.The dogs do have limitations. They can typically only be out searching vehicles or people for about 20 minutes before they need a break, officials said. Drug-sniffing canines can also send false alarms, with studies showing a range of effectiveness.And while CBP&#39;s fentanyl seizures increased in recent years, the agency only appears to intercept a small percentage coming into the U.S.A 2022 report on synthetic opioids issued by a group of U.S. lawmakers, government officials and outside experts estimated that only five metric tons of pure fentanyl would be enough to supply all U.S. opioid users for a year - a fraction of comparable heroin consumption by weight.The street price of fentanyl has dipped to $1 per pill or lower in certain parts of the U.S., suggesting ample supply.

&quot;Of course, if we had more canines, if we had more personnel partnered up with canines, we would continue to do more and more,&quot; he said.At CBP&rsquo;s canine training facility in Front Royal, Virginia, customs officers from around the country are paired with their new four-legged partners, part of a four- to six-month process to teach the dogs to seek out contraband.The drug-sniffing dogs are trained to detect six substances: marijuana, cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine, ecstasy and fentanyl, initially by filling chew toys with &quot;pseudo-narcotics&quot; that smell like the actual drug.The center - located on a picturesque 300-acre property in the Shenandoah River Valley - has training areas that simulate what will become the dogs&rsquo; real-world work environments, including an airport baggage screening room, mail room conveyor belt and an outdoor parking lot with dozens of dusty cars.The dogs tend to be German Shepherds, Labradors, Dutch Shepherds and German Shorthaired Pointers, Sifford said. Goose is one of three Golden Retrievers in service.Most come from breeders in Europe, mainly Germany and the Czech Republic, while a smaller portion are American. They cost on average $11,000-$12,000 per dog and tend to retire when they reach age 8 or 9, she said.While other hard drugs can have distinct scents - heroin sometimes smells like vinegar, for instance - fentanyl is usually odorless, at least to humans.Dogs can learn to detect a new scent in three days on average, Sifford said, but before CBP could start training on fentanyl, the agency needed to develop safety protocols. Trainers always carry four doses of the opioid overdose drug Naloxone - which can also be administered to dogs - although they have not yet needed it, she said.CBP has heard from authorities in other countries who want to learn about the fentanyl training techniques, including from recent outreach from Argentina and France, Sifford said. They have also had requests from U.S. states and localities.Sifford acknowledges the work can be challenging for dogs at the border who have to deal with seasonally high temperatures, long work days and the stress of navigating traffic but said the work matches their breeding and temperament.Dogs have a sense of smell that is exponentially more powerful than humans with up to 200 times more olfactory receptors, according to a 2022 study published in the peer-reviewed Journal of Neuroscience.Dogs can rapidly sweep through vehicle traffic, search suspicious cars and check lines of passengers. They are particularly useful for uncovering fentanyl, which can be moved in small quantities as pills or powder.The dogs do have limitations. They can typically only be out searching vehicles or people for about 20 minutes before they need a break, officials said. Drug-sniffing canines can also send false alarms, with studies showing a range of effectiveness.And while CBP&#39;s fentanyl seizures increased in recent years, the agency only appears to intercept a small percentage coming into the U.S.A 2022 report on synthetic opioids issued by a group of U.S. lawmakers, government officials and outside experts estimated that only five metric tons of pure fentanyl would be enough to supply all U.S. opioid users for a year - a fraction of comparable heroin consumption by weight.The street price of fentanyl has dipped to $1 per pill or lower in certain parts of the U.S., suggesting ample supply.

President Joe Biden, a Democrat running for another term in Nov. 5 elections, has called on Republicans in Congress to increase funding for border security, including counter-fentanyl efforts at legal border crossings. CBP officials say the funding could help expand the use of canines, which includes a pilot program that has trained six dogs to smell for &quot;precursor&quot; chemicals used to make fentanyl.Sidney Aki, the CBP field office director for the San Diego area, worked as a canine handler at the start of his career in the 1990s. Speaking to Reuters at the San Ysidro port of entry in late May, he said the dogs worked in conjunction with scanners and data analytics to root out fentanyl and other contraband.

An estimated 75,000 people died from synthetic opioid overdoses in 2023, mostly involving fentanyl, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.The vast majority of CBP fentanyl seizures occur at legal border crossings in Arizona and California and involve canines, according to CBP data provided to Reuters. Most convicted fentanyl traffickers in recent years have been U.S. citizens, U.S. Sentencing Commission figures show.

One of America's most valuable defenders against fentanyl trafficking at the Mexico border is a Golden Retriever named Goose.

One of America's most valuable defenders against fentanyl trafficking at the Mexico border is a Golden Retriever named Goose.

America’s front line against fentanyl is a Golden Retriever named Goose | ABS-CBN News

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America’s front line against fentanyl is a Golden Retriever named Goose

America’s front line against fentanyl is a Golden Retriever named Goose