Cloning goes mainstream
Like something out of a Ray Bradbury novel, we're slowly but
surely beginning to embrace the idea of genetic duplication
as a tool to make our world more pleasing or long-lasting to
us - starting with our pets. A California company has now
begun offering pet lovers FULL-BLOWN CLONING of their
deceased or ailing cats. The copied kitties even come with a
money-back guarantee of health and resemblance.
Named Genetic Savings and Clone (how perfect a name is that
for the profit-driven direction cloning seems to be headed
in?), the firm also has plans to offer dog cloning in the
future. Apparently, genetically replicating canines has
proven quite a bit more daunting than cloning cats. Perhaps
the hardy nature of feline genes makes the difference - cats
are equipped to resist the mutations inherent to inbreeding,
whereas dogs (and humans) are not. But I digress.
Ever since 1996, when scientists cloned the first mammal,
Dolly the sheep, the specter of cloning for frivolous
reasons (like profit or sentiment) has been looming on the
horizon. And I confess to not knowing exactly where this
line should be drawn. After all, I'm a guarded supporter of
genetically modified foods that are healthier or safer, and
I've even come out in favor of other noble-minded endeavors
in the genetic modification realm - like the flowers that
detect land mines - how could you be against that? (Daily
Dose, 4/13)
Cloning, however, is another matter, in my view. If anything
happened to my beloved Weimaraner, Silky, I wouldn't go
rushing of to an outfit like Genetic Savings and Clone to
have her re-made, like some Frankenstein pup. Like every
other pet or person, she's unique and utterly irreplaceable.
So far, both the American Veterinary Medical Association and
the American Animal Hospital Association have kept mum on
the subject of pet cloning. After all, more cats and dogs to
treat equal more bucks in the till...
Especially since so far, cloned animals suffer far more
serious health problems than natural-born animals. In fact,
according to the National Geographic News, nearly one fourth
of all cloned mammals fail to reach healthy adulthood. But
the question is: Will those unable to get past the loss of a
beloved pet be informed of this fact before places like
Genetic Savings and Loan sell them a genetic duplicate?
And now, in some more "sanitary" pet-related news...
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It's raining (on) cats and dogs
We've got machines for washing just about everything:
Clothes, dishes, cars...
So why not pets?
A Long Beach, California (where else?) pet salon is offering
machine-washing of any pet that fits - dogs, cats, pot-
bellied pigs, whatever - in a high-tech, water-jetting
machine called the Pet Spa. This service is offered while
Golden State pet owners wait, shop, rollerblade, or whatever
it is people on the West Coast do with an extra 20 minutes
or so.
According to a CBS News online article, to demonstrate the
Pet Spa's safety, the salon's owner went through the
machine's full cycle of warm-water jets himself, to no ill
effects. Also, he insists that no pet has had any adverse
reaction or accident. Designed after consultations with
vets, animal behaviorists, and engineers, the Pet Spa costs
about $25,000. (I'm sure glad they included the animal
behaviorists.)
Reportedly, some pet owners are leery of the device - and
with good reason: The Pet Spa looks just like a dangerous
front-loading washer! Many others, though, are drawn to the
unit - especially dog owners, who for $12-$15 per wash can
avoid the hassle and mess of bathing their hound themselves.
I guess this doesn't really surprise me at all. We live in
an instant society, where machines do everything for us. But
it does make me wonder how long it will be before tossing
our dogs and cats into a washing machine becomes too much of
a hassle - and our pets themselves become machines which
require no washing, or food, or brushing, or love...
Only an outlet to recharge in every night.
Making your health (and your best friend's) my pet project,
William Campbell Douglass II, MD
