Twenty eight puppies have been recovered by police from a pick-up truck on a roadside near the port in Larne.
It follows a tip-off from the public this morning.
The Cockapoos and Cocker Spaniel pups were taken into the care of Mid and East Antrim Borough Council.
They will now be looked at by vets and rehomed with the assistance of local charities.
It comes just weeks after the rescue of 17 pups just before Christmas.
The council says it has also been working with DAERA in recent weeks to detect more illegal movement of dogs at ports across Northern Ireland.
Patricia Allen, head of council’s Public Protection, Health and Wellbeing said she wanted to thank the person who got in touch with them.
“We’ve been working closely with statutory organisations in recent months and it’s great to see that with this level of collaboration, almost 40 pups have been recovered.
“A special thanks goes to the member of the public who called in. Without their help we don’t know what would have happened to these dogs,” she added.