How Much Does it Cost to Clone a Dog?
Cloning a dog is the process of copying DNA fragments, cells or organisms to re-create the dog. While the dog won’t be identical with its behavior and appearance, it will be pretty similar. This process was originally done by BioArts International, a company that created a program it called Best Friends Again. Unfortunately, the company stopped cloning dogs in 2009. Today, the company, Sooam Biotech, continues to clone dogs and has claimed it has cloned more than 700 dogs.
How much does it cost to clone a dog?
The price of cloning a dog will greatly vary depending on the laboratory chosen and the amount of time it takes to clone the dog. A dog sometimes cannot be cloned on the first try as it may take a few tries before they are successful. On average, plan on spending $40,000 to $150,000+ to successfully clone a dog.
According to MyFriendAgain.com, the cost to clone a dog will be around $100,000 as per the blog post they wrote.
This New York Post article talks about Dr. Phillip Dupont, a 70-year-old who spent close to $100,000 to clone his 10-year-old Doberman-Catahoula mix. The NPR did a similar story on the same dog.
Edgar and Nina Otto, according to this DailyMail article, spent close to $150,000 for their dog who died of cancer. The same article talked about a cat that was cloned for $50,000.
Cloning a dog overview
Since many people and countries deem cloning unethical, countries such as South Korea tend to be the only country that will clone a dog, but some companies, as per the New York Post article above, stated a Texas-based company has jumped into the game, offering to clone companion animals.
If you were to want to clone your dog, these professional services will first ask that you save the tissue from your dog ahead of time. While this tissue can be extracted once the dog has died, it is very important you get this tissue within the first five days. If the five-day window has expired, it will be impossible to clone the dog.
The average cloning process can take up to two months to process if successful; however, according to our research, most laboratories will take up to a year to clone your dog. If they fail after a year, they can, oftentimes, refund your money, but this will be dependent upon the lab’s policy. Each lab will have its own policy, so it is important to read the fine print to know what you are getting yourself into.
During the cloning process, a sample will be taken from the inside of the animal’s cheek or the abdomen. It will then be converted into a culture along with the animal’s DNA, which is then injected into an unfertilized egg taken from another surrogate. As the embryo develops, it’s inserted into the surrogate and a clone litter, consisting up to four puppies, will be delivered nine weeks later.
What are the extra costs?
If you store the tissue before you want the dog cloned, the facility may charge a storage fee, and this fee can start around $100 to $200 per year, depending on the company. The facility will store the tissue in liquid nitrogen and will start the cloning process when you let them know.
A vet will have to perform a biopsy in order to get to the tissue During this procedure, your dog will be put under a general anesthesia, and the vet will be able to get a piece of the tissue. Once he or she obtains it, it will be mailed off to the lab of your choice.
Once the dog has been cloned, you will more than likely have to travel overseas to pick up your dog. Hotel, food and additional expenses will have to be covered by you. Even if you don’t travel to the laboratory for pick up, you will be responsible for airline shipping fees, which can be well north of $500.
Tips to know:
You do not have to travel to a foreign country in order to clone a dog. Instead, they can send you a biopsy kit that you send to your vet. Once the tissue has been extracted, you will simply mail back the kit, and they do the rest. You may have to travel to pick up your pet, but it may even be able to be shipped. Again, this depends on the lab policy.
When cloning, you never know how many “clones” you can get as this will be the same as a natural litter. It could be one, two or even five.
How can I save money?
It is no surprise that cloning a dog is very expensive, easily reaching the six figures. This service is not normally worth the money, especially since the cloned dog could potentially have a different temperament and personality.
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Average Reported Cost: $150
How much did you spend?
- kenzie lewis (fortwayne, Indiana) paid $150,000 and said:
so worth it, love my little pug
Was it worth it? Yes
