I think the woman you are going to see on TLC is crazy. $50,000? To each his own, I guess. No I wouldn't do it even if it was free. To me, the beauty of each pet is that each one is different and each one has something different to offer. They all love unconditionally. The fun part is growing with them and learning their personalities.

Oh, I don't know. If money was no object, I had one little fuzzy faced, black and white mutt named Hazel I'd like to hug again. She was 16 when she passed so many years ago. Sigh.

No. It might might be a physical duplicate, but it wouldn't be the same. If I had the money, I'd donate it to a charity that helps animals and get a new dog from a shelter. My best dog ever was a shelter rescue.

No, it wouldn't be the same, you would know it wasn't.

Sue

No, for the reasons Georgysmom gave, and also because there are zillions of incredible dogs waiting to be adopted. Monday was the one-year anniversary of our adoption of the 65 pounds of love that's snoring next to me right now.

Absolutely! My dogs are family members whom I love dearly!

No. They'd look alike, but its those quirky lovable personalities we'd be hoping to bring back. And cloning doesn't do that.

Our favorites were all shelter dogs too.

No. I love my dogs but when it is time for them to pass on I know they will go to a better place. We have always been animal lovers but I think this is going to far, but I will say to each his or her own.

like that movie, lol..with arnold...they cloned him too, lol...

As much as I miss my dog, and would love to have her back, I would never clone her. It just wouldn't be her. I'd much rather get a different dog with a different personality and love that one just the same. People and animals can be similar but never replicated as far as I'm concerned. We're all unique.

No. Did anyone see some show where they stuffed people's pets? Saw a clip of it last night and it totally creeped me out. I thought about Luther, buried in the backyard and what the heck would I do with him if he was stuffed instead? Prop him up in the livingroom so poor Emily could be creeped out? It was bad enough seeing the look on her face when Alex and I carried him out back to bury him. What do people do with their stuffed pets? Yuck.

Nope

I'd love to have my cat back, but cloning just doesn't seem right.

no....even if the dog was a genetic 'replica' of your deceased pet, it would not be the same, the temperament and training and human interaction 'creates' the dog you had....

you can never go back

It's not that there is anything intrinsically wrong with cloning. There isn't. There are many scientific avenues to pursue, including the possibility of cloning new spinal cords or limbs for accident victims.

It's just that the stupids with more money than sense think they will get the same animal.

Of course they won't. They can't. That animal, with all its experiences, is dead. This new animal will have different experiences in life than the old one had. It is a totally different animal, even if it has the same DNA.

And then the stupids will be disappointed, and sad, and wondering how fate could have been so cruel.

I think most people would realize that the cloned animal would be somewhat different than the original.

Not only would the pet have a different personality, due to different life experiences, it would not necessarily even look the same. The markings on cloned animals are not generally identical, it has something to do with conditions in gestation as much as anything.

I don't understand why cloning animals should be considered for any reason.

I believe there is something intrinsically wrong with those people. Odd that they feel that losing a parent was easier than losing a pet.

Takes all kinds, as they say.

Sue

Hi, Steph, nice to see you again!! How are the kiddos?

As to cloning my dog, no way. I like the different personalities of all my pets. And they have all been wonderful dogs, but different. I think if you raise a dog with love and patience you will have a good pet. No cloning necessary.

No, I wouldn't have my dog cloned. My puppies are family members, but I wouldn't have one of my kids cloned either.

So what did you think of the program last night? All three people involved in the cloning were a little over the top if you ask me. That man and his "Wolfie"? He was talking to the puppy and saying "Daddy is here, Wolfie, Daddy is here". I mean, he was obsessed to say the least. And the "dog medium" who "spoke" to the Mastiff pup, Blue - what tha'? Do those people really believe that pup was speaking to the medium? I found the whole program unbelievable. Except the actual cloning, now that is very interesting science; but as others have said would the animal be EXACTLY like the donor? Maybe in appearance. Will it have the same DNA?

You can clone DNA, but you'll never be able to clone a dog (or likely someday, a human). Every life and every soul is unique.

I don't like cloning. I have a suspicion that once it's successful, certain genetic traits will start to be cultivated and augmented and scientists will keep wanting to push the envelope on what we can design.

I predict a race of cloned people with superhuman strength who are extremely difficult to kill, who live forever and will eventually enslave us. The end of the world will be caused by either that or zombies. I'm not sure which is worse!

I just don't think I would do it, even if money was no object. Seems rather odd, and if it wasn't exactly like my pet physically and personality, and I had spent all that money (that I don't have) I would be royally P.O.ed! Although I am quite sure that I would fall in love with the cloned dog anyway!!! is there a money back guarantee???? Giggle, giggle

The one I have now....NO WAY...I wouldn't want another one like this one...She is a pain in the sitter downer....

I swear...in the 6 or 7 years or maybe more that we have had her...she has not learned ONE thing that I have repeated over and over everyday since Denny brought her through our front door.

But even if you did clone a dog...it might not be the same as the one you had.

Chi83,

What you propose "certain genetic traits will start to be cultivated and augmented and scientists will keep wanting to push the envelope on what we can design." CANNOT be achieved with cloning.

Cloning is making an exact duplicate by taking the nucleus of an undifferentiated cell (such as an epithelial cell) and injecting into an egg cell (same species of course), and then implanting the resultant embryo into a host mother.

The new animal or human will be genetically identical, but will be different from the donor, in that the experiences will be different.

What you're talking about gene manipulation, gene splicing, and picking and choosing genes to get the result wanted. We are so far away from that!

Oops, I should have said also - the nucleus of the host egg is destroyed before implantation of the desired nucleus, so the host egg contributes no genetic material.

Mary, my response was a bit tongue-in-cheek. However, I do believe gene manipulation is in the future. People have a natural desire to see how far they can go with science.

To me, it's similar to the whole fertility scenario, though I realize it is completely different than cloning. It started off as a way to help infertile couples have babies, and it's evolved to designer babies, where parents can choose the sex, eye color and hair color. And I fear that will go even further as technology improves. We may someday have all babies born beautiful, with high IQ's and in perfect health and while that sounds nice in theory, I think it would be a disaster.

What starts out innocently enough with ways to eradicate diseases or horrible disabilities will venture into pre-determining height and build and facial features and anything else that can be adjusted.

I'm far from a scientist but I really don't think it's that far out there. I realize cloning a dog is not nearly as extreme as the picture I'm painting but who knows what will come next!

In the show, the two Wolfie puppies were born, but one died. They said of a heart attack.

In this link I found last night after the show, it shows two Wolfies. Both alive. And no mention of one of them dying.

Very weird.

Here is a link that might be useful: Wolfie

I wouldn't but DH would have had Mickey, the dog we lost this year cloned in a heartbeat.

Linda

> To me, it's similar to the whole fertility scenario, though I realize it is completely different than cloning. It started off as a way to help infertile couples have babies, and it's evolved to designer babies, where parents can choose the sex, eye color and hair color. And I fear that will go even further as technology improves.

I've actually been to a fertility clinic that performs these services, and know for sure that none of these things are possible even now. A couple can skew the chances of having a boy to 75% (up from a natural 54%), and having a girl up to 90%. I don't think they even offered eye or hair color choices as an option, and for ethical reasons normarily wouldn't provide even gender selection except to mothers whose resultant family wouldn't skew to one gender.

For both dogs and other mammals, personality and even many physical traits are more influence by environment and nurture than by DNA.

Too many dogs now ... not enough homes.

o j

My pets are family, too. But I wouldn't clone them. A clone of an animal doesn't mean that it is the same animal with another life. That's silly. It is a different animal with a different brain, different soul, different personality, and different experiences. Those who want to do it to have their pet back aren't getting their pet back.

I love Caesar but would not want to relive the 18 months it took to potty train him...(assuming the clone was like that)