Five Puppies Cloned from 9/11 Hero Dog

People ^ | 6-17-09

[STARWISE]

James Symington is about to find out whether you can clone heroism.

The retired Canadian police officer – who took part in the rescue operation after the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks in New York City – is scheduled to take possession Wednesday of five puppies cloned using DNA from his beloved late German shepherd Trakr, the rescue dog credited with finding the last survivor in the smoking rubble of Ground Zero.

Symington, who won the opportunity to have Trakr cloned in an essay contest last year, first met his new pups in an emotional encounter on June 14.

"They're identical – down to the smallest detail," Symington said in a statement released by BioArts International, the California company that arranged the intricate cloning procedure. "Few dogs are born with exceptional abilities – Trakr was one of those dogs." Symington said that if the puppies have the same abilities as Trakr, he intends to put them to work as search and rescue dogs.

Trakr died in April at the age of 16. The actual cloning using his DNA took place at the Sooam Biotech Research Foundation in South Korea and was led by Dr. Hwang Woo-Suk, who produced the world's first canine clone in 2005. The goal was to create one clone, CBS News reported, but five genetically identical puppies resulted from surrogate pregnancies. The first of the pups was born on Dec. 8 of last year and the last arrived April 4.

[STARWISE]

To read more about the cloning of Trakr and comment on the story, visit PEOPLE Pets.

Trakr at Ground Zero

BioArts International Clones 9-11 Hero Dog - Owner to Receive Five Cloned Puppies June 17 in Los Angeles

*snip*

Trakr was credited with hundreds of arrests and recovered more than $1 million in stolen goods during his career as a police search-and-rescue dog. Symington, a police officer at the time of the Sept. 11 attacks, arrived with Trakr at Ground Zero as one of the first K9 search and rescue teams on the scene.

There, under horrific conditions, Trakr located the last human survivor to be found in the rubble.

"Once in a lifetime, a dog comes along that not only captures the hearts of all he touches but also plays a private role in history," Symington wrote in his winning essay in the BioArts contest to find the world's most "cloneworthy dog."

For his heroic efforts, Trakr was presented with an extraordinary service to humanity award by Dr. Jane Goodall, United Nations "Messenger of Peace," and was featured in books and magazines dedicated to 9-11 heroes including Dog World and In the Line of Duty.

[STARWISE]

~~~ Sweet pooches ........ PING! They’re so beautiful.

[skr]

Exactly the word that came to mind, beautiful.

[stentorian conservative]

Trakr was a great dog, no doubt about it.

But cloning him? I guess I just don’t get it.

This is just wrong.

[DJ MacWoW]

It’s a greased slippery slope and we are on a downward run.

[Talisker]

But cloning him? I guess I just don’t get it.

Wax your mustache. Twirl it. Look sideways. Chuckle deviously. Think as low as you can... lower... like a Leftist politician... You'll get it.

[GSP.FAN]

Disgusting..
Mengele must be so happy,what next Humans.

They say that if you put a frog into a pot of boiling water,
it will leap out right away to escape the danger.
But, if you put a frog in a kettle that is filled with water that is cool and pleasant,
and then you gradually heat the kettle until it starts boiling,
the frog will not become aware of the threat until it is too late.
The frog’s survival instincts are geared towards detecting sudden changes.

This is a story that is used to illustrate how people might get themselves into terrible trouble.
This parable is often used to illustrate how humans have to be careful to watch slowly changing trends in the environment, not just the sudden changes. Its a warning to keep us paying attention not just to obvious threats but to more slowly developing ones.

[jmcenanly]

I don't see a problem. The original Trakr was the result of generations of selective breeding, as are most domesticated animals. Cloning is just a way we make those plants and animals that are useful to us even more useful. It is not as though we are about to cap off a eugenics program by cloning humans.

[jws3sticks]

Question:

If they are clones, why do two have white flashes on their chest? Cute, to be sure but just wondering.

[east1234]

I noticed the same, but look at the legs, it’s an angle thing. One would think think that clones would lounge identically. lol

[Hetty_Fauxvert]

I am no expert, but I read a couple of articles on the first cat to be cloned (at Texas A&M). The resulting kitten was genetically identical, but had different markings because the same gene can express itself differently in different circumstances (i.e., in a different animal).

[jws3sticks]

I can go with that, with thanks for the posting.