A Chinese woman cloned a dead dog for $22,000 - this helped the woman cope with the loss of her pet (3 photos)

At the same time, the owner notes that she perceives the new dog not as a replacement for the deceased pet, but as an independent, full-fledged creature.





A Chinese woman spent 160 thousand yuan (about $22 thousand) on cloning her deceased pet - the new animal is similar to the owner's previous dog in both appearance and character.

A woman named Xu from the Chinese city of Hangzhou got a Doberman named Joker in 2011. According to her, the dog was a “faithful and brave companion” who was able to give the lonely woman an “irreplaceable sense of security.”

At the age of nine, Joker needed surgery to remove a malignant tumor on his neck. Due to the risks associated with anesthesia, the dog underwent the operation without anesthesia, but behaved calmly.



When Joker was ten years old, he began to have heart problems: the pet often coughed, choked, and suffered from seizures. Xu took him to veterinarians every two weeks, but they were unable to help - in November 2022, Joker died of a heart attack. He was 11 years old.

The death of the dog caused Xu more pain than she could have imagined. The woman began to have trouble sleeping, and Xu also faced a weakened immune system.

"Joker was my closest friend. He lived with me for a whole decade - from the beginning of my studies to the beginning of my career," the woman recalls.

According to SCMP, Xu has a medical background. For many years, she followed the development of the pet cloning industry in China. She consulted several experts in the field, and then turned to a lab, which she decided not to name, and paid to clone Joker. To do this, specialists took a skin sample from the pet, from which they extracted cells, and then transplanted their nuclei into the egg of another animal - this is how it was possible to create an embryo. After that, it was implanted into a surrogate mother, who carried and gave birth to the clone.

According to experts, the cloned animal will be similar in appearance, character and other features to the "original" pet. At the same time, the clone will be absolutely healthy and have almost no risk of premature aging and death.

About a year after Xu agreed to the procedure, she received an ultrasound report confirming the successful development of the embryo. During the celebration of the Chinese New Year, the woman took a new pet - she decided to name the dog Little Joker.

According to Xu, the new dog is very similar to the deceased pet: Little Joker even has the same black spot near his nose. The Doberman loves to steal socks, and also has the same obedient and affectionate character. Moreover, he even takes the Joker's old leash and carries it with him.



Taking care of the new pet helped Xu cope with the loss of Joker for a while, but the woman understands that the new dog will never replace the previous pet. Xu perceives Little Joker as an independent, full-fledged creature.