Why are People Cloning Dead Pets?

One of the more interesting aspects of science in the last couple of decades or so, in my opinion, is the development of cloning technology. On one hand, I think, “there are already too many people on the planet – why would we need two of some of them?” Sure, science fiction has offered up some possible uses like having an extra body lying around in case you get severely injured or need an organ of some kind. Even then, the prospect of having an extra body laying around seems sketchy at best.

One aspect of cloning that has actually gotten a little bit of traction is people cloning dead pets. I first saw the video of a woman named Danielle Tarantola a couple of years ago when she had her dog, trouble, cloned after he died. She went on TV with her new dog, Double Trouble, and talked about how similar the dog was to his predecessor. She talked about the process and the results, and I couldn’t help but ask myself why someone would clone their dead pet.
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If you think about it, if the same persona raises a genetically identical dog or cat, they should be markedly similar, right? the idea of cloning really tests the whole theory of nature versus nurture. How much of our pet’s personality is derived from their genetic make-up, and how much is developed through their interactions with people. I’d think that unless you did everything EXACTLY the same while raising the dog – if you had 10 cloned dogs you’d end up with 10 different results. then again, I guess if you wanted the same dog for the rest of your life – after a couple of clones, you could have the process down to a fine art.

Here is my real issue: the cloned dog came with a price tag of $100,000 dollars. How many dogs are there in animal shelters right now that could have been fed for $100,000 dollars? I know exactly how hard losing a pet can be, especially one that you’ve had for 15-16 years, but $50 grand to have a dog that you claim to understand “isn’t here anymore”? Also, the example I gave of the dog above is only one of many instances of people cloning dogs or cats, and it is one of the least expensive examples as well.
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I understand the mentality behind cloning a dead pet to an extent, but with a 5-6 figure price tag, I have to think there are better ways to spend that money. Then again, that’s just my opinion. Check out this video from Tech Insider that goes through the science and procedure required to clone a dead pet.

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