Jung Da-hyun is a reporter at The Korea Times, covering social issues in Korea, including foreign residents, education, environment and politics. Driven by a deep interest in people’s stories, she focuses on investigative and feature reporting through direct interviews and field coverage. She received the Amnesty International Korea Media Award for her “Deepfake Crisis at Schools” series. Reach her at dahyun08@koreatimes.co.kr. Always open to hearing your stories.
YouTuber's cloned dogs spark debate on animal rights
A screenshot of a YouTube channel showcasing a genetic clone of a dog named Tico that died a year ago
By Jung Da-hyun
Questions arise over lack of regulations on cloning pets
The debate on animal cloning is heating up after a YouTuber uploaded a video featuring genetic clones of her previous dog, which died a year ago. However, there are currently no legal regulations addressing this issue.
The YouTuber, whose channel has 200,000 subscribers and typically features content about her dog, Tico, posted a video titled "Our Puppy is Back," Monday.
According to the video, she commissioned a company to create multiple clones of her dog, Tico, after it died in an accident. It also highlighted her satisfaction with the two cloned dogs.
In the video, she expressed her hope that the public would learn about pet cloning through her case and mentioned that she wants to help others, who are coping with the grief of losing beloved pets.
However, the video stirred debate on the ethical implications of cloning animals, drawing criticism even from fellow dog owners.
“I understand the YouTuber’s sorrow, but it is unacceptable to clone a dog. Dogs cannot express their intentions, and her actions appear to exploit these animals,” said an office worker named Gong You-jin, who has had a pet dog for 11 years.
Choi Ri-ah, a graduate student who has been owned her pet dog for nearly a decade, voiced concerns about the potential mistreatment of the cloned dogs.
“The video features the successful cloning of two dogs, but my worry extends to the possibility of problems arising for the less identical one, such as being abandoned or subjected to negligent treatment,” she said.
The Korea Animal Rights Advocates (KARA) holds a press conference in front of the Veterinary Medical Hospital at Seoul National University in Seoul, criticizing animal cloning research, April 24, 2019. Yonhap
The Korea Animal Rights Advocates (KARA) pointed out the lack of a proper protection system for animals, noting that at least 10 dogs are used to create one cloned dog.
As an invasive procedure of cutting a female dog's stomach to collect eggs is necessary for cloning, KARA raised concerns about proper post-surgery care and treatment transparency.
The ethical implications of using multiple animals to create a single clone have also been raised as a significant concern.
“The process of cloning involves modifying several animals, with only one selected while the rest are discarded, which stirs controversy and ethical debate,” said Park Jong-moo, a veterinarian.
The lack of transparency in the cloning process has also drawn concerns, given that all organizations involved in animal cloning operate within the public sector.
Jung Jin-a from the Korean Animal Welfare Association (KAWA) emphasized the necessity of an animal ethics committee to oversee procedures such as cloning.
However, the challenge in identifying the laboratories currently engaged in such experiments makes it difficult to judge the ethical aspects of animal cloning procedures.
Under the current law, the Bioethics and Safety Act only applies to human beings. While there are laws regulating experiments on animals, cloning for commercial purposes, as seen in the YouTuber's case, falls outside the regulatory scope.
“Although there are benefits of animal cloning technology, such as the conservation of endangered species, regulations specifically targeting the commercial cloning of animals are needed,” said Han Joo-hyun, a lawyer who also advocates for animal rights.
The website of the company that created the clones of the YouTuber's dog is currently inaccessible.