MELBOURNE, Australia: The evidence doesn't lie. A local council in the state of Victoria will use DNA testing in a world-first trial to help bring canine offenders to heel in cases of animal attacks, according to newspaper The Australian.

Port Phillip council officials started handing out DNA test kits to animal control officers as part of a new campaign using advanced technology to help investigators identify canine criminals and their uncooperative keepers.

The three-month trial program trains animal control officers to do some serious crime scene investigation work- collecting trace evidence from fur, saliva, blood and feces to assist in tracking down dangerous animals and their owners, according to ABC News.

The kit, manufactured by Genetic Technologies, Australia's largest DNA testing laboratory, includes swabs, gloves, sterile containers, a tamper-proof evidence bag and a specimen phial that would help meet evidentiary standards required in court, news website NineMSN says.

The facts are rather disturbing: Dog attacks on humans and other canines are fairly common. There are 100,000 dog attacks in Australia every year, but very few result in actual prosecution. About 75 per cent of attacks are against other animals, the remainder against humans.

In the state of Victoria alone, more than 400 people are sent to the hospital each year as a result of dog attacks. And almost half of attacking dogs are repeat offenders but many cases go unresolved.

There are uncounted millions of dog attacks around the globe. For example, earlier this year in New Zealand, a Jack Russell Terrier heroically sacrificed itself to save five children from a savage attack by two pit bull terriers. Thus, collecting such vital evidence from canine crime scenes is important in building a strong case against these dangerous dogs.

Port Phillip council learned a valuable lesson in 2004, when officials used DNA evidence to identify two dogs which mauled a Pomeranian to death while it was being walked on a leash. According to the International Herald Tribune, the offending canines were ordered to be put down, and a magistrate fined the dogs' owner $A8550 (approximately $7200) for failing to control the pets.

The key to cracking the case? Trace evidence at the scene cross-matched with DNA taken from fur and feces positively identified the offenders, according to The Seattle Post-Intelligencer. The Victorian council made forensic history by becoming the first council in Australia to successfully prosecute a dog owner using DNA analysis.

Councillor Janet Cribbes is completely behind the new training program for animal control officers, and is keen on bringing wayward pet owners and their dangerous dogs to justice. Speaking to newspaper The Age, she said: "Some owners simply deny their dog's involvement in attacks and, without witnesses, it's sometimes impossible to show otherwise."

"Others are in denial about their dog's behaviour and claim that their precious little poochy could never have done it. Where a dog owner has more than one dog of the same breed, DNA testing will also allow the identification of the correct dog," she adds.

"Apparently, sometimes just the threat of DNA testing is enough to persuade some dog owners to fess up. It will speed up fines and prosecutions."