Comments on: Old (or New) Faithful: Fido 2.0

By: Cindy Lee

Cindy Lee — Sat, 03 Jan 2009 02:17:39 +0000

I dont think I could clone one of my dogs any more than I could clone one of my children. It would not be possible for either of the two dogs I have now to be the “same” if they were cloned. A clone would not spend its formative puppyhood in a house full of teenage boys at the beach. No, clones would be totally different and because of that I will enjoy the company these dogs for the short times they are here realizing that someday they will be physically gone but like the dogs that came before them, always with me spirit.

By: Beth Westmark

Beth Westmark — Thu, 01 Jan 2009 22:53:57 +0000

It would be Maggie, our current dog. I understand Robt. Paterson’s dilemma and sense of loss. We are on the fence about getting another dog while Maggie is only nine. However, my husband’s 71st birthday gives us pause (no pun intended) about another dog (maybe especially since Maggie is the “best” in a long line of “best” labs we have loved). The thought of a “last” dog is very sobering.

By: Robert Paterson

Robert Paterson — Thu, 01 Jan 2009 17:17:43 +0000

Jay – my current main dog – is the dog I always wished for as a boy when I cut my cake.

I wonder if he may be my last dog too – as I think that having another in my 70′s may be too much.

As I write this I feel such a loss.

By: Carrie

Carrie — Thu, 01 Jan 2009 16:30:38 +0000

Even if they were able to be identical in behavior and temperament, I don’t think I could clone one. I’d miss out on all the goofy stuff the other ones have done. Each of my dogs has been deeply annoying and wonderfully sweet and funny, each in her own way, and I’d miss out on the others if I only kept the one.
Though I did hear about a couple who had “Cricket the Perpetual Dog” which was just a dog of the same type and coloring to the first Cricket, and who was taught the same tricks. The couple didn’t want to upset the grandkids, so Cricket lived on.

By: Dog-geek

Dog-geek — Thu, 01 Jan 2009 13:28:54 +0000

I don’t think I would ever want to clone a dog. I think the fact that their time with us is limited is what makes it so precious. And I do enjoy the “box of chocolates” variety of dogs out there – I have learned something from every dog I have shared my life with, which has made me a better trainer, a better teacher, and a better dog owner. But if I did clone one of my dogs, I think I would choose my very first dog – I would love to see how that dog would turn out if he didn’t have to suffer through all the mistakes I made with him, and if he got the benefit of everything I have learned about behavior and training in the years since he was trained.

My oldest dog right now is my heart dog, but I couldn’t bear to clone him, knowing that his clone would suffer the same debilitating hereditary problems with spondylosis and possibly degenerative myelopathy. I don’t think I could do it a second time. Instead, we will just try to make the most of whatever time we might have.

By: Dennis

Dennis — Thu, 01 Jan 2009 12:05:12 +0000

Cloned dogs would not be any more alike in behavior than twins. Dog breeds are very close to cloning already, having a rather small gene pool. The brain, which controls a lot of behavior in dogs and humans, does not develop under genetic controls; but is different even in twins or clones.