Cloning dogs to live forever.

A lab in south Korea is helping pet owners extend the relationship between them and their pets by cloning their pets so they could live forever. People deal with the loss of their pets in very different ways. Some carry on as normal, some may cuddle their pet’s favorite chew toy while sobbing and others immediately rush out and buy a replacement. This extra bond between pet lovers/owners and pets has evolved into seeking perpetuation of there pets ,this is done by cloning their dogs. The clinic called Sooam uses the same method that brought Dolly the sheep (1996 nuclear transfer to clone the dogs. The cells are taken from the pet to be cloned and the nucleus, that contains the organism’s genetic information, is removed and saved. Then an egg cell from a donor pet is obtained and the nucleus is replaced with that of the pet to be cloned. The egg cell is then given a small electric shock to stimulate division, and after a few days the developing embryo is placed back inside a surrogate bitch. The surrogate doesn’t have to be of the same breed, but ideally they would be of similar size. The pets are not like the original dogs, but more of an identical twin. Some dogs may also appear slightly different; the clones may also not have the same temperament as the original dog. The potential of extending a genetic line is huge ,the economic implication may not make it viable for all pet owners. The business of cloning is very lucrative as the cost ranges from $100,000-300,000 per client,not every dog lover can afford this luxury,this is also coupled with the fact that not all cloned dogs are healthy as some are put down after cloning. The choice of cloning should be weighed against risks and benefits and its entirely a decision of pet lover.