Pet peeve

A new bill would ban pet cloning

By Tali Woodward
San Francisco Guardian
http://www.sfbg.com/39/25/news_cloning.html

In December, Sausalito-based Genetic Savings and Clone delivered the first cat cloned for commercial purposes – that is, for someone willing to buy a genetic copy of a deceased pet – to a Texas woman named Julie. She paid $50,000 for Little Nicky.

Although no scientist in the world has yet successfully cloned a dog, GSC is planning to produce the first clonal canine sometime this year. And the company will culture and store DNA from a cat or dog for $895, plus a $100 annual storage fee.

The whole thing has some animal rights activists pretty worked up. Jennifer Fearing, who is president of animal rights group United Animal Nations, told the Bay Guardian, "We find the cloning of pets particularly egregious because there is absolutely no rational reason for it."

So Van Nuys state assemblymember Lloyd Levine has introduced bill A.B. 1428, which would ban the sale of any cloned or genetically modified pets within the state.

It's hard to argue that anyone needs a cloned pet when roughly a million unwanted cats and dogs are put to sleep in California every year. Besides, as Fearing pointed out, clonal animals have shown a tendency toward genetic defects, other health problems, and dying young. The cloning process requires additional animals to act as donors and surrogate mothers, but since the industry is unregulated, there is no way to monitor how those animals are treated. There's also the dicey issue of selling supposed replicas of well-loved companion animals.

But the pet cloners remain resolute.

"Given that Genetic Savings & Clone (GSC) is the only company in the world currently offering cloned pets, the bill is clearly designed to shut us down and deny pet owners and their animals the benefits only we can provide," the company said in a statement.

GSC argues it's odd to blame the cloners for the homeless-pet problem, when it has produced only six cats so far – and has paid more than $350,000 to spay clinics. (This isn't out of the goodness of its heart: GSC buys the clinics' medical waste – including cat and dog ova – to make clonal zygotes.)

Professor David Magnus, who is codirector of the Stanford Center for Biomedical Ethics, hasn't taken a position on Levine's bill but says pet cloning is morally problematic on several levels. "Number one, I think it's a rip-off," he told us. "People are interested because, essentially, they don't want their pet to die. As a dog person, I sympathize. But complex behavioral traits are very much dependent on experiences."

More important, Magnus said, cloned animals aren't as healthy as naturally conceived pets. "What's still unknown are the long-term effects. Given all of these issues, it's hard to see how this could be justified."

Posted 4/19/05

A California-based company called Genetic Savings and Clone (GSC) has sold two cloned cats, for $50,000 each, and sees that as the start of a multi-billion-dollar industry.

In response, a California Assemblymember, Lloyd Levine, has introduced a Bill (AB1428) to ban the sale of cloned or GM pets in the state. American Anti-Vivisection Society, United Animal Nations and the Humane Society of the United States oppose cloning at this time, as scientific literature indicates that cloned animals suffer and often die, and one such company's own admission, up to 45 percent of cloned kittens who are born alive will die within four weeks of age.

The Bill will be heard in Committee on April 26th.

Assemblymember.Levine@assembly.ca.gov Assemblymember Lloyd Levine State Capitol Building P.O. Box 942849 Sacramento, CA 94249-0040
Fax: (916) 319-2140
And please pass this on. For much more information, see: http://www.NoPetCloning.org/ http://www.genetics-and-society.org/analysis/pet/
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SAMPLE LETTER

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Dear Assemblymember Levine,

I strongly support AB 1428, which will ban the retail sale of cloned and genetically modified pets.

Several companies are marketing cloned and genetically modified pets to California consumers despite strong opposition from the public and a lack of scientific grounding. In fact, the scientific literature clearly indicates that cloned animals suffer and often die, and one such company's own admission, up to 45 percent of cloned kittens who are born alive will die within four weeks of age. The health and well-being of cloned and genetically modified animals and the potential impact upon public health and the environment have not been assessed.

In addition, there is no guarantee that cloned animals will be 'carbon-copies' of the original animals in either appearance or personality. Further, companies that market cloned and genetically modified pets currently are not regulated by the federal government which requires basic standards of animal care and use.

AB 1428 prohibits the commercial sale and transfer of cloned or genetically modified household pet animals within California and in doing so, it 1) saves animals from unnecessary and cruel experimentation; 2) protects consumers from being exploited during their grief over dying pets; and 3) ensures that the environment and public health are not negatively impacted by wanton genetic tinkering.

Please register my support of AB 1428 to prohibit this unethical commercial activity.

Sincerely,

Your Name Your Address City, State Zip