Biologists warned the couple about the risks of cloning and the fact no dog had ever been successfully cloned more than five days after its passing. Unperturbed, the couple traveled from the U.K. to South Korea, with their frozen former pet dog, to have the pioneering work undertaken. The result, according to The Guardian, was an unprecedented success and cloned puppies were successfully produced. The cost of the process alone was $140,000.
Cloning is not a straightforward technique and it requires tissue samples. For the process involving dead pets, which is slowly growing in popularity among some sections of the global wealthy, tissue samples are sampled from the deceased pet. Next, DNA is extracted from the tissue cells for the cloning process.
With the case of Dylan, scientists at the Sooam Biotech Research Foundation were able to successfully produce not only one embryo but two. The process began in June 2015 and this month two puppies have been “born.” The puppies are named Chance and Shadow.
In the video below the couple involved explain why they embarked on the expensive process:
Speaking with Laboratory Roots magazine, Laura Jacques said: “After they got him out I still couldn’t quite believe it had happened. But once he started making noises I knew it was real. Even as a puppy of just a few minutes old I can’t believe how much he looks like Dylan. All the colorings and patterns on his body are in exactly the same places as Dylan had them.”
Aside from reacting to a situation after a pet has died, as was the case with Dylan, some companies offer a service where samples can be taken from a living pet. Cells are extracted from a blood sample; then cells containing DNA are grown and then cryopreserved and stored for future use. Cloning, however, is controversial, ethically and scientifically. It can lead to side effects including genetic anomalies and it remains a science at the early stage in its development. There are also high failure and mortality rates.
