Special police officer Wang Wenjie (left) helps Defu, a 4-year-old police dog, in a prey-and-bite training session on July 8. Photos by Chen Feng / For China Daily

Related: Increasing involvement of dogs as part of security enhancement

"If a terrorist ever launched an attack on me in close range, Souka would paralyze him at once with his deadly bites. I won't even need to use the gun. That's how much I trust him," Ma said.

In Xinjiang, some police dogs have suffered knife wounds or even lost their lives during their counterterrorism missions.

National police dog training bases:

Four police dog training bases and research centers have been set up nationwide in Kunming of Yunnan province, Nanjing of Jiangsu province, Nanchang of Jiangxi province and Shenyang of Liaoning province. Kunming base (includes Malinois and Kunming dogs) Focuses on police dog training and research. Is responsible for technical and operational guidance involving dogs from eight provinces in southwestern China. Nanchang base (includes Rottweilers and Doberman) Focuses on breeding and scientific research. Responsible for operational guidance involving dogs from 10 provinces in central and northwestern China. Nanjing base (includes Labradors and springer spaniels) Focuses on dog disease control and prevention, and information management. In charge of technical guidance for dogs from six provinces in East China. Shenyang base (includes German shepherds) Focuses on technology and teaching. In charge of technical and operational guidance involving dogs from eight provinces and regions in North and Northeast China.

In one incident, a canine jumped into a car through the window to attack the terrorist suspect inside. The pain from the dog's bite was too much for the suspect to bear. He triggered the explosives on him, killing himself and the dog. But further injuries on civilians were prevented.

Souka received a medal in 2010 for discovering hidden drugs in three separate missions. Ma put the medal on Souka's neck, but the canine soon decided to carry it in his mouth because the dangling item made him quite uncomfortable.

"Look, doesn't he look like an Olympic champion?" Ma said, laughing.

Training the warriors

Many members of the public may still believe that the German shepherd is the top police dog breed because of its large size, but that is not the case anymore, Ma said.

Shorthaired Malinois like Souka are trimmer and more active than German shepherds, which means they can jump higher and work for longer hours. Malinois have become one of the most popular canine breeds in Xinjiang as well as in different security forces around the world.

The ideal average service time for a police dog is eight to 10 years because its teeth will become weaker with time. Ma has made up his mind to adopt Souka after his retirement as the pair have become inseparable.

Timi, a 6-month-old East German shepherd, stands out from his other well-trained canine colleagues that constantly try to warn their officers about strangers with their frenzied barking. Timi never barks when strangers pass his kennel. Instead, he always wags his tail and shows passers-by that he is eager to play and make friends.

"Timi is still in the puppy training stage, which is all about making him fall in love with biting items such as a ball. The desire to bite and fetch is the foundation of mastering all difficult tasks because for the canines, every mission can seem just like a game," Liu said. "But in just six months, he can be fierce and strong enough to take part in counterterrorism missions."

Defu loves to chew his yellow rubber ball. He knows that every time he finds an explosive or successfully attacks a terrorist, he could be rewarded with the ball. That is what drives him to do his job, his trainer said.

To avoid the heat, most of the canine trainings are held in the early morning and late at night during summer. Defu has been learning to detect a new substance used by terrorists to make explosives in recent attacks.

"It is like updating its software," Liu said.

Defu failed to locate the new scent the first time and lay down next to the wrong suitcase, which was used as disguise during training. Liu punished Defu by not giving him the ball and encouraged the dog to search again by patting on his chest. The short and strong sniffs from Defu told Liu that his canine partner was trying extremely hard.

A few minutes later, Defu lay down quietly next to a different suitcase. The most important thing for a canine to avoid doing, once it senses the explosives, is to touch them with its paws because that might trigger the devices.

Liu opened the suitcase and found a piece of cloth that had been infected with the substance inside. He slowly pulled out the yellow ball from his pocket and made Defu believe that the ball came from the scent.

Like humans, canines can also make mistakes.

"The dogs might be wrong about the location of the explosives due to various factors such as wind direction and heat. They may also attack officers from other squads during combat, thinking they are terrorists too. It's just like friendly fire," Liu said.

Canines also care about their looks.

"They can perform better when they know they look good," Liu said.

Before taking them into the van for missions, the dogs must be groomed and taken to their usual spots to defecate.

Carsickness is another difficulty a police dog has to overcome. Although the special canine transportation van has a ventilation system, Defu always threw up after each ride at the beginning of his career.

"Now he really enjoys the view outside," Liu said, while peeping at the small screen showing live footage of Defu standing at the back of the van watching out of the window. The specially equipped van has cameras installed so the handlers can keep an eye on their partners on the road.

"She knows when she is taken to an assignment or for training," said Zheng Nan, Liu's colleague, referring to his female Malinois partner called Luoluo.

"We normally wear camouflage uniforms during training and black ones for missions. Luoluo can tell the difference and knows when to get really serious."

Unlike male dogs, 17-month-old Luoluo is naturally relatively timid, but she can be just as intimidating and brave when she is with Zheng. Female canines are also more careful during detection assignments.

"She is more confident when I am next to her, and so am I," Zheng said.

Luoluo's name originates from an ancient Chinese goddess, and Defu means "winning people with virtue". Unlike the older generation of handlers who often name their canines after dragons or wolves, the younger ones tend to be more innovative, Ma said.

"We now have Kele (cola) and Shutiao (french fries). All we need is a hamburger."

Combat experience

In China, canines based in Kashgar have the richest experience in counterterrorism combat, said Wang Aihui, instructor of the prefecture's special police force's police dog brigade.

The brigade has 75 canines and 100 more will join later this year.

"The terrorist suspects are obviously scared of our dogs and many squads always demand that the canines join their missions, especially during arrests," Wang said.

Obama, a 5-year-old Malinois named after US President Barack Obama, is the star of the brigade because he has proven his skills in many missions.

Details cannot be revealed due to the confidentiality of the missions, Wang said.

Obama the Malinois is based at a checkpoint in Kashgar city. His job is to protect four special police officers from potential threats as terrorists have targeted police forces.

"The canines' reactions are much faster than ours. By the time we load the gun, they may have taken down the suspects already," said Tian Chuan, also from the brigade.

Tian's blood tracking dog Diandian (small dot), an English springer spaniel, is small compared to the other dogs. But he has successfully located a terrorist crime scene from a murder weapon in 2012.

"Diandian is a determined canine. Sometimes I know he is tired but he just keeps going until he tracks down the source of the blood," Tian, 28, said.

"The canines are loyal, brave and focused, no matter what their working conditions and how cruel the terrorists they have to face are. We can learn so much from them," Liu said.

He threw Defu's yellow ball as far as he could and watched his partner running after it with great joy.

"Defu is just not my friend or my partner," Liu said.

"He is another part of me."

Contact the writer at cuijia@chinadaily.com.cn.