Military Working Dog Stamps

This year the US Postal Service is honoring the nation’s brave and loyal military working dogs (MWDs) with a new book of 20 stamps. Each block of four stamps features one stamp of each of the following breeds: German shepherd, Labrador retriever, Belgian Malinois and Dutch shepherd, all of which commonly serve in America's armed forces.

The background of each stamp features a detail of a white star. A star appears in the center of each block. The stylized digital illustrations are in red, white, blue and gold to represent the American flag and patriotism. The art was created by DKNG Studios. Art director Greg Breeding designed the stamps

These stamps are just so cool, and an amazing way to celebrate dogs who serve or have served in the US military. MWDs are used as part of search and rescue, or search and destroy, and many other important working roles. It’s estimated there are about 2,700 dogs currently serving in the US Military. The cost of training a MWD can be between $20,000 to $40,000 depending on its specialization. Regardless of its assignment after training, MWDs and handlers travel together to their target destination, wherever that might be.

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Photo credit: U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Kevin Reese and his military working dog Grek wait at a safe house before conducting an assault against insurgents in Buhriz, Iraq, April 10, 2007. U.S. Army Soldiers from 5th Battalion, 20th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Infantry Division and Iraqi army soldiers from 4th Battalion, 2nd Brigade, 5th Iraqi Army Division are going house-to-house in search for weapons caches and enemy fighters after more than 1,000 residents of this Baqubah suburb were displaced by Al-Qaeda insurgents. (U.S.Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Stacy L. Pearsall)

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