A grief-stricken British couple whose boxer died in June 2015 successfully cloned their dead dog after taking its DNA to a commercial dog-cloning service.
Laura Jacques, 29, and Richard Remde, 43, paid US$100,000 (NZ$146,000) to enlist the services of Sooam Biotech Research Foundation in South Korea, reports the Guardian.
A boxer puppy was delivered by a surrogate dog on Boxing Day following a successful procedure.
The couple have named the male puppy Chance. They are expecting another cloned puppy to be ready in a few days, which will be named Shadow. Both names are drawn from characters in Disney movie Homeward Bound.
“I can’t believe how much he looks like Dylan. All the colourings and patterns on his body are in exactly the same places as Dylan had them,” Jacques told the Guardian.
“The whole thing feels surreal.”
“I had had Dylan since he was a puppy. I mothered him so much, he was my baby, my child, my entire world,” said Jacques, a dog walker.
Sooam has produced more than 700 dogs for commercial customers. The technique involves implanting DNA into a “blank” dog egg that has had the nucleus removed.
Personally, I wouldn’t do it. It will be a dog that looks the same, but will it have the same personality and spirit? I suspect not.
What about you? Would you clone your pet? What if it was free?
– Guardian via Stuff
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