Pet dog Booger 'cloned'

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Scientists in South Korea say they have completed the world's first commercial cloning of a pet dog.
Bernann McKinney, from California, paid out £25,000 for five identical copies of Booger, her beloved pit bull terrier.

The puppy clones were unveiled at a press conference in Seoul, on Tuesday, reports the BBC.

"Booger was my partner and my friend," Ms McKinney said, as she appeared with the five identical copies of her pet.

Scientists at Seoul National University created a number of embryos from preserved skin cells taken from Booger's ear tissue before he died.

The embryos were then implanted into two surrogate mother dogs and, three months later, the puppies were born.

"They are perfectly the same as their daddy. I am in heaven here. I am a happy person," said a tearful Ms McKinney.

The former beauty queen, from Hollywood, recalled how Booger once saved her life by chasing off another dog that had attacked her, leaving her with serious wounds.

She said she was considering training some of the puppies to help the handicapped or elderly after they are delivered to her in the US in September.

The company which arranged the cloning, RNL Bio, says it is now open for future bookings.

Chief executive Ra Jeong-Chan predicted that the company could clone up to 300 dogs next year for wealthy pet lovers.

He added: "For my next project, I will consider cloning camels for rich people in the Middle East."

Nova