Puppy born from frozen embryo
Image: Cornell University photography
Cornell University researchers have announced that a puppy born from a frozen embryo is developing normally. Now nine months old, the beagle-labrador retriever cross named Klondike is one of the first puppies in the world to be born from a frozen embryo. He is reported to be a typical, playful and curious puppy, with no indications of serious health problems.
Klondike's beagle mother was artificially inseminated, and the resulting embryos were collected and frozen until the surrogate mother, also a beagle, was ready to receive them. As female dogs can only become pregnant once or twice a year, the ability to freeze canine embryos is essential for coordinating timing for transfer to the surrogates.
It is hoped that this technique could be used in the future to help replenish populations of endangered canines, such as the red wolf.
Researchers believe it is likely that the process of cryopreservation, or freezing tissues such as eggs, could be used on any number of rare canines.
Alex Travis, director of Cornell's Center for Wildlife Conservation said: "Reproduction in dogs is remarkably different than in other mammals. We're working to understand these differences so we can tackle issues ranging from developing contraceptives to preserving the genetic diversity of endangered animals through assisted reproduction."
Defra has published guidance for the vet sector ahead of a proposed UK-EU Sanitary and Phytosanitary agreement.
