Woman orders dead pit bull cloned

SEOUL, Feb. 16 (UPI) -- A California woman reportedly is willing to pay $150,000 for a clone of the pet pit bull terrier that saved her when another dog bit off her arm.

Bernann McKunney has contracted with a South Korean firm to clone her dead dog, Booger, who died 18 months ago, the Daily Mail reported Saturday.

Working with tissue preserved from Booger's ear, scientists at RNL Bio said they already have inserted Booger's genetic material into egg cells from a donor dog and implanted the fertilized cells into eight surrogate bitches, the British newspaper reported.

The Seoul company previously cloned an afghan hound in research experiments. Booger's clone would be the world's first commercially cloned canine, or canines, since there could be multiple puppies. McKunney, whose life was saved by Booger when she was attacked by another dog, won't have to pay RNL Bio unless she receives a live clone of her beloved dead pit pull, the Mail reported.

Three years ago, a now-defunct California firm produced the world's first commercially cloned cat for a Texas woman who paid $52,000 to replicate her 17-year-old tabby, Little Nicky.