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Russian scientists have crossed a jackal with a husky to make the ultimate sniffer dog. Jackals have a much keener sense of smell than their domestic cousins, but are rather less willing to be put to work. So Klim Sulimov at Russia’s D. S. Likhachev Scientific Research Institute for Cultural Heritage and Environmental Protection tried to selectively breed this ability into huskies, with a view to training them to sniff out drugs and explosives at airports. At Sheremetyevo Airport in Moscow, 25 of the new breed are now being used to inspect planes and luggage, while 10 more work in a nearby forensic department.