Grieving pet owners can overcome their grief fairly quickly, thanks to a company in Seoul, Korea, that promises to clone your dog for $100,000.
NPR's Health News Channel reported that 600 dogs have been cloned by South Korean company Sooam Bitotech. Most of these dogs have been cloned by grieving pet owners like Paula and Philip Dupont who cloned their dog Melvin when he began to show signs of deterioration. (The two dogs pictured are clones of Melvin.)
When Paula and Philip Dupont first bought Melvin they noticed that he was not the breed he was advertised to be. Instead of being a Catahoula leopard dog, Melvin was a mutt, part Catahoula and part Doberman.
"I paid $50 for him," Philip told NPR. "But I wasn't going to return it. I thought for a while I was going to put him to sleep. Turned out to be the best dog I ever owned."
When Melvin reached 9 years old and became sickly, the Duponts decided that they would invest $100,000 in cloning him and quickly sent Melvin's skin cells off to the lab.
The first puppy they received from the lab died from distemper. The lab sent two more cloned puppies, Ken and Henry, who blossomed under the care of the elderly couple, who state that having all three dogs was like having three Melvins in the house.
Less than two years later, Melvin passed away.
They couple admits to missing Melvin but they do appreciate having two dogs who are similar in personality and looks to the one who stole their hearts first.
Photo: NPR.
