Top Australian sniffer dog set to be cloned

Up to 10 clones could be made and trained to sniff out drugs and explosives for government agencies and private companies.

The deal to create Australia's first batch of cloned working dogs is being negotiated between two Melbourne-based companies and South Korean scientists.

Detector Dogs Australia and Von Forell International breed and train dogs for jobs around Australia, including bomb detection at Port of Melbourne. They are discussing the cloning deal with a South Korean company.

Co-managing director Kris Kotsopoulos said cloning technology provided an alternative to breeding programs, which were a "gamble" when trying to reproduce sniffer dog with the right characteristics for the job.

"They need particular instinctive traits and if they don't they can't be trained," he said. "There is a huge shortfall globally of police dogs and breeding alone doesn't replicate consistent quality."

The cloned puppies would be made from tissue samples taken from a german shepherd called Hassan von Gruntal, who died in 2001 and comes from an East German bloodline known for courage and commitment.

Mr Kotsopoulos said the first litter of clones would be monitored to ensure the correct traits were passed on genetically. Samples from four more german shepherds and one doberman have also been stored to create future clones.

Animals Australia executive director Glenys Oogjes slammed the deal to clone working dogs.

"The real concern is that cloning can cause terrible birth defects," Ms Oogjes said. "There will be a considerable number of animals that will be deformed.

"I don't think it should be allowed."

The world's first cloned sniffer dogs reported for duty in South Korea in July 2009. An American police dog called Trakr, who sniffed out survivors in the rubble of the World Trade Centre after the September 11 attacks, was privately cloned in 2008.

The Australian deal is expected to be finalised in 2012.