Zanna Jordan never imagined she would be on the first line of defense for American agriculture as a K9 handler for U.S. Customs and Border Protection. 

As a 1991 animal science graduate from the Texas Tech University’s College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources, she always had hopes of attending veterinary school. However, her life took a different path.  

After graduating from Texas Tech, she married an Army man and worked as a vet technician until their arrival in Washington, D.C. in 1991. But, it wasn’t until one of her professors from Texas Tech gave her a recommendation letter that led to the career she has now had for 13 years. 

“I was given a referral to USDA from one of my professors and advisers from Tech,” Jordan said. “I applied with USDA and became a lab tech within Beltsville, Maryland.”  

However, Jordan had to put her career with the USDA on hold while her husband, Damon, was stationed overseas. Upon arriving back to the states, she began working in a veterinary clinic once again until one day she had an epiphany. 

“I did not have any benefits, and I didn’t have a true career,” Jordan said. 

A friend of hers then suggested working for U.S. Customs and Border Protection where she worked as missions support. Then something truly amazing happened. A former client from the veterinary clinic saw her one day and remembered Jordan had a degree in agriculture. 

“The client asked me why I wasn’t working for them,” she said. “I asked who ‘them’ was, and she said USDA ag inspections there at the Mexican Border. I did not realize they existed down here, and got picked up as an ag specialist.” 

This new opportunity opened the door for her, and in 2006, she became a land and border K9 handler where she worked with her first four-legged partner, Honey, a lab mix. The K9 program is used to help detect foreign agriculture goods from entering into the United States. She worked Honey for seven years, and upon her partner’s retirement, she decided she would love to work another dog. 

In 2014, Jordan received a call notifying her she would be moving back to Texas. She moved back to the Dallas-Fort Worth area and began working her current K9 partner, Gadget. Jordan’s job at the DFW International Airport is very similar to her time at the border, with a few changes. 

Ginger Herrell-Lopez, chief agricultural specialist at the DFW’s U.S. Customs and Border Protection unitsaid Jordan and the Beagle Brigade are protecting American agriculture.  

“She is a pleasure to work with,” Herrell-Lopez said. “She is always motivated, knows her job, her dog and the importance of the ag mission.” 

Herrell-Lopez said the beagles are a great conversation starter and are highly notable because of their breed. 

“Zanna uses the dogs to intercept prohibited agricultural items that passengers may be bringing on their person or in their luggage,” Herrell-Lopez said. “So, she’s protecting American agriculture by preventing the entry of foreign pests and diseases.” 

Jordan also does outreaches with her partner, Gadget, at schools, 4-H clubs, businesses and more. 

“My job is to protect American ag from potential pests, diseases, and invasive plant species, and to also protect endangered or protected species of animals or plants,” Jordan said. “I always strive to represent ag in a positive way. I’m not there to just take food away, as a lot of people think. I take honor and pride in the fact that when I do encounter somebody, I try and explain why I do my job, and give them an example so I can promote ag and teach people with what I do.” 

Selena Parker, an agricultural specialist K9 officer, has worked with Jordan since her arrival at the DFW airport. They’ve become good friends and colleagues throughout their seven years of working within the Beagle Brigade.

“For one thing, when working a dog, you have to be valid in your referrals,” Parker said. “You can’t say your dog referred this if the dog did not respond to the bag. So, if you’re having a day where your dog is not responding to anything you have to accept that’s what’s happening that day. Zanna does a really good job of that. You have to have a lot of honor and integrity to be able do that.” 

Jordan said she loves working in a career that allows her to promote agriculture in any way possible and wishes more people knew about her job as it relates to the industry. 

“I think that’s something not only CBP as an ag specialist needs to promote, but agriculture as a whole needs to continue to do,” Jordan said. “What I love about my job is not just working the dog and the challenge that it has, but that fact that it gives me the opportunity to explain to people why we want to protect our agriculture.”

This new opportunity opened the door for her, and in 2006, she became a land and border K9 handler where she worked with her first four-legged partner ‘Honey,’ a lab mix. The K9 program is used to help detect foreign agriculture goods from entering into the United States. She worked Honey for seven years, and upon her partner’s retirement, she decided she would love to work another dog.

In 2014, Jordan received a call notifying her she would be moving back to Texas. She moved back to the Dallas-Fort Worth area and began working her current K9 partner ‘Gadget’. Jordan’s job at the DFW International Airport is very similar to her time at the border, with a few changes.

Ginger Herrell-Lopez, chief agricultural specialist at the DFW’s U.S. Customs and Border Protection unit said Jordan and the ‘Beagle Brigade’ are protecting American agriculture. 

“Zanna uses the dogs to intercept prohibited agricultural items that passengers may be bringing on their person or in their luggage,” Herrell-Lopez said. “So, she’s protecting American agriculture by preventing the entry of foreign pest and diseases.”

Herrell-Lopez said the beagles are a great conversation starter and are highly notable because of their breed.

“She is a pleasure to work with,” Herrell-Lopez said. “She is always motivated, knows her job, knows her dog, and knows the importance of the ag mission.”

Jordan also does outreaches with her partner, Gadget, at schools, 4-H clubs, businesses and more.

“My job is to the best of my ability and the dog’s ability to protect American ag from potential pests, diseases, invasive plant species, to also protect endangered or protected species of animals or plants,” Jordan said. “ I always strive to represent ag in a positive way. I’m not there to just take food away, as a lot of people think. I take honor and pride in the fact that when I do encounter somebody, I try and explain why I do my job, and give them an example so I can promote ag and teach people with what I do.”

Selena Parker, an agricultural specialist K9 officer, has worked with Jordan since her arrival at the DFW airport. They’ve become good friends and colleagues throughout their seven years of working within the Beagle Brigade.

“For one thing, when working a dog, you have to be valid in your referrals,” Parker said. “You can’t say your dog referred this if the dog did not respond to the bag. So, if you’re having a day where your dog is not responding to anything you have to accept that’s what’s happening that day. Zanna does a really good job of that. You have to have a lot of honor and integrity to be able do that.”

Jordan said she loves working in a career that allows her to promote agriculture in any way possible and wishes more people knew about her job since it relates to the industry.

“I think that’s something not only CBP as an ag specialist needs to promote, but agriculture as a whole needs to continue to do,” Jordan said. “What I love about my job is not just working the dog and the challenge that it has, but that fact that it gives me the opportunity to explain to people why we want to protect our agriculture.”

Sidebar

The Beagle Brigade at the DFW International airport is used to aid in the detection of prohibited agriculture items and spends months in school learning how to detect the items.

Not much is known about the program, and Zanna Jordan, an agriculture specialist K9 officer at the airport, works to promote the organization, the agriculture industry and what their jobs entail in protecting American agriculture.

“A lot of people do not realize that this job exists,” Jordan said. “I like to tell people, especially in college, ‘Hey this is something you can do with any science-based or ag-based, degree.”.

Ginger Herrell-Lopez, chief agriculture specialist, says the beagles are a great outreach tool, not just for CBP at the airport, but for agriculture as well.

“The beagles are very noticeable because of what they are,” Herrell-Lopez said. “They’re a lot more friendly and a lot more eye catching for the passenger, not as threating as some of the other dog breeds. A lot of times they’re a good outreach tool for us. They do their enforcement job, their regulatory job, but a lot of the times it’s a conversation starter, its outreach, and it’s a way for us to start a conversation and explain what we’re doing. A lot of people are not aware of our mission, their good ambassadors for our mission.”

The Beagle Brigade does a number of different outreach opportunities from schools to even private business entities. The sole purpose of an outreach event is to teach people where their food comes from, and what they can do to protect the industry as a whole.

“We’ve spoken to them directly in regard to our jobs and how we do it and why we do it,” Jordan said.

The Beagle Brigade outreach is a chance to show people what the beagles are used for, why the handlers do their jobs, and even what it consists of. Not very many people know about the agriculture K9 job within CBP.

“I don’t know if it’s just because for so long it was predominantly seen as a border job,” she said. “When you talk about land/border people think of immigration, customs, tariffs, that type of inspection or law. They don’t think about ag playing a part in the commerce industry both internationally, at international airports, and land/borders. They just don’t think of that aspect when they think of inspections in regard to the border.”

Jordan said her career could also be a consideration for students currently pursuing agriculture degrees.

“Ask questions, and do some research on the organization,” Jordan said.

More information on the Beagle Brigade can be found at CBP.gov website, and dontpackapest.com houses information regarding travel and prohibited items.