Service dogs with the People's Liberation Army (PLA) will be trained to support combat and anti-terror operations, in addition to their regular roles, the PLA Daily said on Friday.

The new regulation, the paper said, quoting a source from the PLA General Staff Department, defines service dogs as special combatants, an essential part of fighting capabilities and an irreplaceable military resource.

The regulation clearly stipulated how military dogs should be bred, fed and outlines care measures. It also commented on the professional training of the dogs and their deployment.

Dogs, along with their handlers, will be awarded military merits and may face penalties if they fail certain tasks, said the paper.

A report from the Global Times on Friday said that China's military dogs may also be used in movies after retirement.

PLA military dogs are deployed to training facilities, airports, piers, missile bases, warehouses and coastal defense lines. Due to a lack of clear responsibilities, the dogs are poorly managed and do not meet the standards of a developing army, said the PLA Daily.