---
title: "China Clones Top Police Dog, With Goal of “Mass Production”"
description: "Chinese officials have cloned a top-performing police dog, state media announced, with the goal of stamping out genetically identical dog cops."
date: "2019-03-20"
modified: "2019-03-20"
authors:
  - name: "Jon Christian"
    job_title: "Executive Editor"
    link: "https://futurism.com/authors/jonc"
url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/china-clones-top-police-dog"
categories:
  - "Science & Energy"
tags:
  - "cloning"
  - "dogs"
  - "police"
  - "the digest"
---

# China Clones Top Police Dog, With Goal of “Mass Production”

![Chinese officials have cloned a top-performing police dog, state media announced, with the goal of stamping out genetically identical dog cops.](<https://futurism.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/china-clones-top-police-dog.png>)
*\<em\>Image: MaxPixel/Tag Hartman-Simkins\</em\>*

## Clone Army

Chinese officials cloned a top-performing police dog, [state media announced](<http://www.globaltimes.cn/content/1142709.shtml>), with the goal of stamping out genetically identical dog cops. The pup, named Kunxun, is a clone of the "Sherlock Holmes of police dogs," [according to *Reuters*](<https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-china-science-clone/china-clones-sherlock-holmes-police-dog-to-cut-training-times-state-media-idUKKCN1R1079>).

She's just started police dog training, to see whether the original dog's aptitude for drug detection and crowd control have carried over.

## Dog Backlog

Kunxun was born in December in an experiment carried out by Sinogene Biotechnology and Yunnan Agricultural University and supported by the government.

It's a genetic copy of a 7-year-old dog named Huahuangma that won accolades as a "first-class meritorious dog" for investigating homicide cases, [per](<http://www.globaltimes.cn/content/1142709.shtml>) Chinese state-run paper *Global Times*. Tests show Kunxun's DNA as 99.9% identical to Huahuangma's.

## K-9 Line

To the Chinese government, the project comes down to money.

Training a regular police dog in China costs the equivalent of $60,000, according to the *Global Times,* and takes up to five years. If the experiment's a success, the goal is "mass production" of cloned police dogs.

**READ MORE:** [China clones 'Sherlock Holmes' police dog to cut training times - state media](<https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-china-science-clone/china-clones-sherlock-holmes-police-dog-to-cut-training-times-state-media-idUKKCN1R1079>) \[*Reuters*\]

**More on cloned dogs:** [*Wanna Clone Your Dog Like Barbra Streisand? Here Are Four Things You Need to Know.*](<https://futurism.com/clone-dog-barbra-streisand>)

## Author
I'm responsible for editing, assigning, and scouting at Futurism, as well as occasionally writing for the site. That work involves keeping an eye on a wide range of narratives and issues, but over the past few years I've become increasingly interested in how AI is shaping the future of media, the web, and information itself. My day-to-day often involves collaborating on reporting and commentary projects bylined by my colleagues, but I try to find time to do my own reporting as well; stories I've broken for Futurism have been cited by publications including the New York Times, the Washington Post, the New Yorker, Wired, Ars Technica, New York Magazine, the Columbia Journalism Review, Bloomberg, and more. I grew up in Southern Vermont and attended Vanderbilt University. Prior to Futurism, I contributed to outlets including the Boston Globe, Vice, Wired, Slate, the Atlantic, the Outline, Ars Technica and more, and did stints in farming and food service. I currently live in Brooklyn, New York, and in my free time I enjoy pinball, word games, cycling, running, and music production.

### Author social links  
[Bluesky](<https://bsky.app/profile/jonchristian.net>)