Absolutley agree! Imagine people walking in and donating $30k-$35k to a shelter, what an amazing world that would be!

I loved my Chloe Cat beyond my ability to say. She was that "once in a lifetime " pet for me and when I lost her, I grieved for the longest time. I didn't think I would ever love another pet the way I loved her. However, in her memory, I adopted another, older cat, my beautiful boy Fitz who was 10 when he rescued me. And I was right - I don't love Fitz the way I loved Chloe, but that's because he's a different cat with a different personality so I love him in a different way - just as much, but different . I also adopted another little girl, Lily, who's disabled, and I love her differently to Chloe and Fitz, because she's different. I'll never forget my beloved Chloe but that doesn't stop me from loving my current furbabies, just as I'll love all my future cats, all of whom will be adopted "hard to home" older or disabled cats because they need me. I'll spend my time and money helping cats who are already here and in need - that's my way of honouring the love I still have for my Chloe.

When I became a "crazy cat dad", I loved my two girls immensely. They changed my life forever. As they got older and each had their own medical conditions, I learned a lot about feline health by watch you, Jackson, and doing my own research. Armed with that knowledge, I made a promise to my girls that I would adopt, in their memory, after they passed on. As much as I miss them, I would never have attempted to clone them even if I did have the financial means to do so. I feel for every animal stuck in a shelter that has no home. After my girls passed, I kept my promise and adopted an older, bonded pair and they now have a home to call their own and I love them as much as I loved those two girls that started it all.

Just all tears over here. Lost my kitty almost a year ago, and still miss him so very much. At the beginning of this video, my thinking was that the only thing that would stop me from cloning my dear feline would be its affordability, but then you got into the details of what is actually done to get to the final result, and that convinced me that it's a terrible path to take. Much better to donate what I can, and adopt from a shelter, when I am finally ready to love a new little being. Thank you!

We lost our cat Roland a few months ago. So we rescued Ivan from our local animal shelter. That's the way it should be.

As much as I miss my pets from the past, I LOVE having room in my house to save another cat. I have 3 cats. All are rescues and 2 were a bonded pair of brothers they wanted to keep together. Since I didn't clone my last 2 cats, I was able to keep Buggy and Lemur together where they will remain for life. Their sister, they just had to learn to love and now, they're a rescued pride!

There's only one way I would clone my cat: Cuddle Clones, which are stuffed animals that are custom made to look exactly like your pet. It will cost you a couple of hundred dollars, but it's a lot less objectionable ethically. It's the only thing I would ever consider. Also, as Vision put it: What is grief but love persisting.

My childhood cat was amazing. He was my best friend. The sweetest companion, everyone in the family still talks about him 37 years later. There is no way I could ever replicate his experiences that made him who he was. He spent his first few weeks with his very protective mother and his 3 siblings. My grandfather and grandmother cared for them. He then came home to our house with his feisty sister. I was a very gentle 2 1/2-year-old and I doted on him 24/7. I carried him around in a tissue box, so I wouldn't accidentally squeeze him while trying to hold him. He was never left alone until I was 5 and had to go to school. Then he would walk me to school through the wooded area behind my house and stop at the school fence and watch me walk into the building. He would come running to greet me in the backyard when I got home. He was pretty much the Lassie of cats. Back in the 70s cats were indoor/outdoor. We lived on a culdesac in town that backed up to undeveloped land with acres for them to roam and no predators. I'm not sure he would be as happy stuck indoors all the time. He loved to hunt and was always bringing back mice and other rodents. They were Maine Coone mixes. Not fat but absolutely huge. He and his sister would terrorize the neighbor's cocker spaniels when they would let them loose in the neighborhood. They had each other's backs. He ended up dying when I was about 12. He had a heart condition and couldn't be saved. I always thought it was because his heart was just too big. His sister lived until she was about 18 and died from cancer.

The weirdest thing to me is how owners delude themselves in imagining that their cloned animal will get the same PERSONNALITY as the one they lost, just as similar twins can have radically different personnalities even if they share the exact same DNA code with the same education and the same parents at the same time ! Unless what they miss the most is their animal appearence and very generic tendancies, this makes does not seem to make any sense.

It’s a NO for me and it is insidious! The abuse of “surrogate animals” - they didn’t sign up for this. Just disgusting this whole process. I had no idea of the awful details. Thanks Jackson for putting this out there!

I’m going to file this one under “stuff that should definitely be illegal.” Entirely too many people never stop to think that just because we *can* do something doesn’t mean we *should.*

I had a friend out of grief who adopted a cat to "replace" a lost one, she realize soon you do not replace easily; he can be a clone, a perfect copy, but still a different soul

THE ORIGINAL LOVE THAT YOU SHARED W/YOUR PET, CAN NEVER BE DUPLICATED, CLONING IS WRONG !

Thank you all for what you’ve already said. I never want to judge the person who seeks to defy the will of nature. It’s, of course, very tempting. But think extra hard about it. For the reasons I outline, and others have said here.

I lost my beloved feline buddy of 17 years, Mondo, almost a month ago now. It will be a month this Wednesday morning. He would have been 21 years old in August. His loss was sudden and unexpected and it hurt(s) like hell. Yet, under no circumstances would I clone him. I cherish him for who he was and the magic he brought to my life. I remember with fondness and bittersweet tears, the magic of his younger self as well as the sweet grandpa cat he aged into. His magic continues in my memory and my heart which has no desire to repeat the past, but to give the love I have to a creature who lives now and is not wanted. I would rather adopt a new magic sprite than grope emptily and desperately after something that has come, a create that has gone, and a memory and love that should continue in its own lovely form. Life is bittersweet. Loss is part of that.

i'd love to have my cats back who passed, but the joy of meeting a new cat and learning to love him/her isn't something i'd ever want to give up.

Hubby and I were literally talking about this earlier. Our Skilos is the best chihuahua ever. I can't imagine life after he's gone. He's already 13 years old and is exhibiting different behaviors. He's more clingy and needy. He's the sweetest baby boy. But I agree with the comments, it may be him physically but his soul, his character, his experiences with my kids as they grew with him the last 13 years will not be the same. We will have to grieve and move on. 😭

I feel like if I cloned my cat, lily 2.0 would still be a different cat. She wouldn't have that bond we had nor her memories. I'd prefer to adopt one of the many cats that need homes, especially a senior

Well said. The love comes with grief. It's a cycle of life. The world has enough animals that are yet to be rescued. Let's not add those failed cloned animals to it and create more burdens. As much as I would love to bring back my 10 year old Bengal cat that passed a few years ago, but her passing made me extend my love to four more rescues now living happily with us.

Halfway through this, I had to hold my Remy and tried not to cry. Honestly, clone or not, it's not fair to expect an animal to be exactly like what we've lost. We've had and lost dogs that we've loved deeply. And we've (my family) known it was a bad idea to get a new dog too soon and not to get the same kind because we knew that it would be too easy to put unfair expectations on the new dog to live up to the last one. I love my cats. They're my greatest loves. Remy especially. And he's getting older and I'm preparing myself for the inevitable goodbye. It absolutely crushes me to think about. Nothing makes me cry faster. I don't even come close to having the means to even consider cloning, even if I disregarded the ethical problems with it. When it comes down to it, it reads to me the same as getting a new pet and expecting it to be exactly the same. It will lead to disappointment for the owner and the animal won't understand why they're not "good enough". We are all, animal and human, a combination of our genes and our experiences. Could Remy have better teeth if I'd had him from kittenhood and he had a better diet when his adult teeth came in? Yeah, probably. Would have saved me a lot of money in dental work and he wouldn't have a lopsided grin now. But having him cloned doesn't mean that I get to "fix" that. It just means another cat that looks like him and probably has the same general temperament gets a shot at it. It wouldn't *be* Remy. It's not rewinding the clock. I could never perfectly recreate his life in a way that would assure the clone would turn out exactly the same. The clone could possibly not choose me the way Remy did. He snubbed my ex (who owned him for a year before I met him) and bonded to me so closely that my ex let me take him when we divorced. I think cloning has its uses, such as rescuing critically endangered animals from the brink of extinction. It could have its ethical uses eventually as the technology improves. But cloning *individuals*, especially with the expectation of a cloned individual to be exactly like the original, isn't right. It's also really quite vile and another example of capitalistic greed that these companies take a science that has the potential to do good and manipulate people's grief and love to spend absurd amounts of money like this. Especially as wasteful as it is with all the "failures" and "rejects" that happen. It's not a "clean" enough process for this. I really didn't expect to have such a strong opinion on this, but here it is. Thank you, Jackson, for addressing this. I didn't know it was something I needed to see.

When my daughter's first cat, Boris, passed away, it sent my kid into a tailspin. Yet strangely a month later, a former bottle baby siamese mix literally fell in our laps, followed by a feral tuxedo kitten. A cat rescuer told us that Boris had sent them to us as they immediately bonded to my child and he saw she needed more kitties to love. We would've missed these two blessings if we'd cloned him as well as the kind of cat that is good for one stage of your life might not be the personality you want twenty years from now.

I agree totally. My favorite cat Bella died suddenly after getting her teeth cleaned. I picked her up on a Friday at closing time. My vet said she would be fine. I had them cleaned a few years earlier. I knew when I brought her home that she was dying. I could not reach my vet. We spent the weekend going to emergency care. It was traumatic for her, my husband, and me. The ER wanted to keep her overnight on Saturday. I said no. I knew she was dying and she needed to be with us and not alone in a cage in a cold room. Th ER put in their report to my vet that I refused care because it was going to be $600. My vet knew that we would have spent multiples that amount if I thought she could recover. It’s been over 6 years and as you can tell, I will never get over it. I went into such detail to make a point regarding cloning. I believe that if I had cloned her and if she was the same sweet loving Bella, I would relive that terrible weekend over and over. I cannot think of any circumstance where cloning is humane and morally acceptable.

Jackson, thank you so much for this message! The way you describe the grief over a soulmate pet is spot on - it was comforting to me to hear these words from you because I finally feel like someone understands what I’ve felt since my soulmate cat tragically died in a house fire almost 3 years ago. You make some excellent points here that people considering cloning may not have thought of. Animals, just as we, are influenced by not only genetics but life experience. And while I understand how that grief could lead people to want to pursue cloning, the cost is too great to the animals who are made to suffer for it, and I feel that causing that suffering for the sake of hoping to lessen your own is not only selfish, but also disrespectful to the memory of the lost loved one. I would do anything to have my kitty baby back, but subjecting others to suffer is where I draw the line.

Ah, Jackson, I love both your passion and your clarity and wisdom. Suffering grief and loss is part of life. And, if we learn its lessons, this should make us treasure the times we have with them.

On a very shallow surface level, I’ve thought it would be neat to have a clone of my childhood cat. She was very much my heart cat, and sadly only had a short life because she lived outside. My parents were against having pets in the house back then, but they have changed their minds over the last 15-20 years. I thought how cool it would be to get to give her the kind of life she deserved to have back then, spoil her rotten, and get to have more time with her and make sure she knew how loved she was! But then I thought a little more and realized, no. The new clone might know how loved she is, but my old childhood cat would still be gone. My memories of her are distant now, but I loved her very much and she knew it and loved me back, and I will never forget her. She is gone and always will be. And it wouldn’t be right to clone her for a lot of reasons. I’m sure I’d love the clone cat, but she would not be my childhood cat even if she looked just like her. She would be her own individual self, just like any other cat I could adopt one day would be. It’s much better to make room for other cats and pets who are already born and need a home into my heart and do the best I can by them in her memory. My current cat is such a love bug, and I make sure to give him the best life I can.

I have had so many cats and thought I would never get over their loss and never adopt another. That did not last long. There is nothing better than finding another little soul to bring back the joy to your life.

This saddens me. My Flower is my baby, when she passes I will be broken. I’ve lost a lot but I wouldn’t clone anyone, even after losing my mom at 14. I agree with you Jackson. Grief needs to be normalized. We go through it and most of us come out the other side. It’s okay for all of us to feel emotions.

Absolutely agree with you. I’ve had so many cats and dogs over the years and as painful as it is loosing them I would never even consider cloning. I believe in nature. Thank you for all you do.

Animals have souls. No one can clone a soul. Grief is the price we pay for love, and however painful, it's worth it.

I went on a whole rant about this on Twitter and I'm too heart broken to go over it again. Just to keep it short, my shared experience of time with Sadie and Lucy was the only time in existence. It was experienced by me, as well as them. An unimaginable amount of animals who need homes are euthanized in shelters every. Single. Day. This couldn't be more self serving.. I understand grief is overwhelming but it's so self serving to clone a pet. And like you said, the companies are praying on grief. I have a feeling I will agree with everything you say and I'm glad you're going to talk about this.

Absolutely, agree 100%! I too had a pet only he was a ferret named, Benny. Loved him so deeply, he died of natural causes in my arms years ago and I literally felt my heart break and I still weep sometimes thinking of him. I would give anything to have him again, but, that's just it, I can't have my "Benny" back. Think about it, Jackson said something very profound, we now can clone the body, but we cannot clone the spirit with the love, the personality, the experiences that made that pet so very special in our hearts. I can find another ferret, the same sable markings, the specks of black on his nose, but you know what, he may not be Benny, but I can love him just as much and be touched by his special soul just as I was with Benny. Blessing upon you, Jackson for all the great work that you do, my sympathy to all those who have lost that very special pet, and to Benny - wardance upon the golden fields across the rainbow bridge and know that I still love you. ❤🌈

Absolutely agree with Jackson, I love my cat, but I couldn’t do that. He’s not a thing to be replaced, you can’t just get an exact replica and the pain goes away. Be present for your cat, cry when it ends, and be thankful for the time he was there to save your life as you did for him. When you are ready, you can later adopt another cat, not as a replacement, but as another companion that you’ll you love and care for their entire life.

This is so horrible. Thank you for talking about cloning, Jackson. My cats can return to me in a different, unique body, but only if they choose to do so. It is a spiritual connection I have with them. It's not a machine that can be simply recreated.

From a statistical view, this basically perpetuating the issue with buying bred cats instead of adopting sheltered ones. From an ethical point of view, you're basically stamping out the identity of a soul yet to be born because you cannot accept the grief of having lost your pet and move on. Even then, you're only replicating the looks of your cat. Their personality will not be the same and neither will your attitude raising them as you'll do it with the expectation of your cat returning instead of nurturing the new life before you. What if the clone isn't a perfect copy? Will you discard them just because of that? What will happen when the 'clone' dies? Will you be so stubborn as to keep this process going on until you yourself die? I know I'll be devastated when my cat dies. It's hard to accept the years you'll spend with your pet being over now but you should not project your grief onto another cat.

I agree with you Jackson! I had an absolutely lovely cat when I grew up, she was my best friend. I witnessed her birth when I was three years old and I witnessed her death a couple of weeks before I moved away for college 16 years later. That cat meant the world to me, we were both skittish and anxious, but found great comfort in each other. She slept under my duvet every night. Losing her is still one of my greatest sorrows in life and I truly miss her, but I would never clone her. I would see that as a disrespect of our deep connection and our relationship, no one would be able to fill that gap, and pushing that expectation on another animal is cruel and unfair. I will always have a special place in my heart for her and remember her with fondness, and I will still be able to open my heart for that kind of love again with another pet. All animals are different, even if they are clones. Cloning doesn't give you your pet back, it keeps you from moving on and it hurts the animal that's being cloned.

At one point I thought about cloning my Burmese cat. He was one in a million. Discussing it with my spouse, we decided that it would diminish our cat's very being. He was a singular creation - to be loved for who he was. It would also be unfair to the cloned version as we would expect them to react just like their predecessor, but they don't have that pet's life experience - unfair expectation on the new generation. Love them for the unique being they are

All my cats were rescued by me, from outside. Most were starving or dying from injuries. Their personalities and the path we took together to develop trust and a wonderful relationship took time. And these components, plus their experiences before their rescue, developed the personalities they had. They are/were all different, and all precious and loved. You cannot make a genetic clone that replicates the journey of a human or animal that shapes who it becomes. And that journey is what counts, not what he or she physically resembles. No to cloning, and if anyone has $35 grand lying around, support a shelter. Your conscience will thank you, and karma will reward you for the animals you will help.

So many talking about kitties appearing in our lives at just the right moment. This spring, a stray mama and three new babies fell into our lives, and, after a few careful months, have moved in and now we have four cats! We had cats years ago, and it would seem that our first family sent us a new one 💕 I retired this fall, and am so grateful to be able to share this next stage of my life with these new sweethearts. Thanks, Jackson, for teaching me how to make a warm and cozy home for this very loving and loveable family. No need to clone with so many kitties out there who need our love and care!

I enjoy and learn SO MUCH from your videos, Jackson. I've been the owner of three cats, all strays. The first one was a tabby kitten that followed me around when I attended classes at a mental health institution. Needless to say, she greatly contributed to my mental health, until I became pregnant and my partner insisted I give her away. Her name was Baby. My second cat was a Calico (female, of course) kitten that someone left at a pet shop and my son and I fell in love with! She was SO SPECIAL! She lived with my son and I for years, until we had to sell our home and move in with my mother. Mom NEVER LIKED CATS before, but Kit Kat was so special that she fell in love with her. My son and I later left the country and my mother happily stayed with her. But she was a senior, in her 90's, and she got a severe eye infection that my sisters assumed was from emptying the cat litter box, and gave her away. Both my mother and I were heartbroken. Finally, my beautiful current companion, a small male tabby that is 9 years old, found me. He is the PERFECT COMPANION. Clean, intelligent, affectionate, communicative (but only meows to let me know he wants something or is bored and wants to play), domesticated and VERY HEALTHY! He was adopted as a kitten, along with a sibling, by a woman that took great care of him. BUT, she used to let him out and the last time she did he did not return for months. She was getting ready to move to another state and finally had to leave, leaving him behind. I happened to be in the apartment complex, looking at one to purchase, and Kat came up to me and was very affectionate. There was going to be a freeze that evening and I knew that Kat would not survive outside, so after asking a few people about the owner and being told he was a stray, I asked if he wanted to come home with me and he jumped into my car. A few days later, I took him to the vet and confirmed that he was microchipped. I contacted his owner and she was in tears, telling me that none of her family members in the state I lived in liked cats and she was just brokenhearted knowing I would probably have to take him to a shelter, where she knew he would be euthanized. I calmed her down by letting her know that I was very happy with Kat, as he with me, and asked if I could keep him. She agreed. We contacted the company that tracked his owner via the microchip and made the transfer, with me being registered as his new owner. I just moved to FL and Kat is SO VERY HAPPY with the "Catification" I've been able to provide, that he no longer begs me to let him out. I am much happier having him indoors, where he is safer, but felt sad when I could not comply with his begging me to let him out where we lived before. Now we have a large, screened, porch, on the first floor, where he loves to hang out, and two windows that provide plenty of "cat TV" for him. Sometimes he will shoot into the living room from the porch and run to my bedroom, where he can jump onto the window sill and continue to keep an eye on a squirrel, or cat, or dog, or even an interesting person he spotted from the porch! He has two litter boxes, which I had not been able to provide before. There are lots of cats on the property and he has made some friends! All within the safety of his own home. He is very territorial. We communicate well, play and cuddle together, and I think that, although I've loved my previous cats, Kat is my soulmate. I take very good care of him and hope he lives a long, healthy and happy life with me. However, I WOULD NEVER HAVE HIM CLONED!!! As you said, that is INSIDIOUS! I HAVE BEEN ABLE TO LOVE AND ENJOY ALL THREE OF MY CATS, EQUALLY. It's amazing that each one met my needs according to my stages in life! In my senior years, Kat is a perfect companion. He loves time to himself and loves time with me and is quite a playful little thing! Does NOT seem his age at all!!! When his time comes to leave me, I will be happy to adopt another senior cat and provide a loving home for it as well. I am taking advantage of all the information you provide and doing everything in my power to look after Kat properly and make sure he has a great life with me. Thank you so much for all you share. All the best!

I lost my cat a few months ago, and I genuinely feel like I will never find another cat as special as she was again. But even with all the love I have for her and how hard it is to say goodbye, I would never clone her. To me, that’s disrespecting her and disrespecting life in general.

Honestly, I think the idea of cloning pets is absolutely ridiculous and is EXTREMELY unethical. In my opinion, it's nothing more than a giant money making scheme. I agree with Jackson. These people are predators who take advantage of folks who are grieving the loss of a pet and are in a vulnerable state. My dogs and cats are individuals with their own distinct quirks and personalities. There will never be another one of any of my pets. My babies will live their one life with me and then they will eventually pass on when it's their time. I could NEVER replace them with a "replica" that looks just like them. People need to realize that cloning the physical body does NOT also clone the animal's soul or their personality. Yes, you may have a dog or a cat that looks identical to your "original," but it will be an entirely different animal with its own distinct personality and traits. Who even knows what kind of health and/or behavioral issues these cloned animals may be prone to??? That is a HUGE concern. I cherish the time that I have with my fur kids. When they pass on, I miss them dearly, but I always have many fond memories of them and they will live on forever in my heart. I do not need or want a clone. Now, if you want an ETHICAL and cute clone, check out Cuddle Clones. You send them a photo of your pet and they will make you a custom life-sized stuffed animal that looks just like them. They are kind of expensive, but they are adorable and are nice to have as a keepsake. We got one made of our oldest Golden Retriever, who passed away from cancer 6 months ago, and it is the cutest thing ever. Everyone loves it.

Respect and appreciate how unique our pets are and give a home to another pet in need when it's time. There's not a limit to how many animals we can love! Besides cloning seems a bit like Pet Sematary.😬

Thank you Jackson for sharing this! When we've just lost our furbaby boy, I had the idea pop up in my mind how great it would be to just copy paste and have a little longer. But it's not fair to our baby boy, we'll let him rest and we'll love him as long as we remember him. We're trying to find a new baby boy in the shelter who'll go well together with his future sister. Looking forward to a new adventure and looking back on great memories ❤️

Even if I could, there's no more "room" to agree with you more than I do now. You're right 10000000%

I don't like the idea, because it's not really the pet you lost that passed away. It's the soul of another pet that shares dna with your pet who passed away. Plus, there's so many furbabies that need homes. Rich people spending 50k doing this are dumb.

Having had the Perfect Cat, TC the Calico for 17 years, this is one whom I would have cloned. As a Calico she was extremely unique in her markings, truly one of a kind. She arrived as a stray, fully grown, house-trained, spayed, and skilled in the hunting skills of an outdoor cat. She was perfect, so saying goodbye at her advanced age was terrible. The technology was not ready, so her unique genetics were lost forever. Then it occured to me that what made her so perfect was the life that she had lived before showing up in our backyard. Her learning experiences made her the way she was. She passed in 1981, and I still miss her to this day.

Thanks for an informative and compassionate video. I read about the Streisand puppies and for a second, it sounded wonderful. I lost my yorkie last month to sudden kidney failure, and the truth is, he’s irreplaceable. He was my fur kid, but I’m a different person compared to getting him ten years ago. Life goes on and unless I could recreate every experience that happened to him, he would also be a different dog. My cats mostly fill the void and that’s enough. There are plenty of animals who would love a home, adopt one and move away from the idea of cloning. Your best buddy can never be duplicated.

Jackson touched on this concept in the video, but I think it needs to be stressed even more when discussing cloning of pets: The clone is *a completely different animal* from your deceased pet! It only *looks like* your deceased pet, but that's all. The clone does not, can not, have your deceased pet's mind and soul. It's a brand new animal, the clone won't know who you are, it has no memory of your deceased pets life or the love it had for you. You mean nothing to the clone when you first meet. Sure, you might be able to develop a new relationship with the clone, but it will be a completely different relationship than the one you had with the first pet. It's really no different, at all, than simply adopting a new pet from the shelter. The only difference is you paid $30,000 to create a new animal that only *looks like* your previous pet..but that's all. And when it comes to a relationship with a pet, looks mean literally nothing, it's the least important thing.. but looks are all you get with a clone.. I'm sure there are people who actually believe that a cloned pet will also have the original pets mind.. (remember, science literacy is in a sad state at the moment.) 😞 IMO this important detail really needs to be stressed when discussing pet cloning. It's far better, in every possible way, to adopt a new pet from a shelter.

I've always felt icky about the concept of cloning animals, especially just for human wants. Thank you so much for such a thorough video on this topic, I wish more people understood the implications of cloning or even breeding animals

This hit me really, I would not consider cloning but I understand the temptation. My family owns a chihuahua that changed our lives, it’s the first animal I have loved sooo much, and I know it would be devastating when she pases, I think if we have a clone of her it would be fantastic spending time with her again but the thought of her incapable of recognizing us, her home, her favorite toys it’s too much, also, she has a neurological disorder and I will never subject her (and us) to that pain all over again, that would be truly cruel. At the end I think it’s just an illusion.

I had a wonderful cat for 15 years and went through a very tough time when I had to have him put down due to illness. As bad as it was, cloning never was an option I ever considered. Sure, a clone may look like your pet, but it's not the same animal you loved, it's just a copy. It's been 5 years since my buddy died and I still miss him very much. I started volunteering a local county animal shelter last summer and I have to say it has been a very rewarding experience. I get to interact with many cats and dogs, and I feel really good when each shift is over. I'd love to have another cat, but unfortunately my wife is not the animal person I am. Anyway, nice video, thanks.

Hey Jackson! You've helped me overcome my lifelong fear of cats, and I'm now adopting a kitty of my own.

No it isn’t right…It’s like all the babies …..we have plenty…we don’t need more. I’m a retired social worker and my heart breaks for all the unwanted and very lovable children.

as much as i would love to do this for my sweet baby that passed away this passed july, it wouldn’t be the same. the kitten wouldn’t have the memories we’ve experienced or the bond we had. i love him dearly and i want him to stay as him and only him in my memory

I've loved all my pets. Cloning would've prevented me from meeting and loving new soulmates. Science is cool, but a love for a pet transcends

Jackson Galaxy: "You can't tell me they will be the same animal. That is reductive to the point of insinuating they are machines." Me: "If humans can love their pet more than a human, and we would never think about cloning a human... then..."

I would give anything to have my Mimí back with me, but cloning is not magic, nothing can bring my friend back. It offends me that there are people in the world offering to sell me that lie at the cost of my love for her.

You should keep moving forward with this kind of content, I find this moving forward along side the declawing video were truly some of the best videos I’ve seen from you(not to say shorts, or that your videos have not been good). These kinds of topics truly spark discussion, and you have the perfect platform for it. Keep it up, the editing, to the research, to offering both unbiased and biased source material. Otherwise, great work!

A very thoughtful and humane take on a complex issue. Thank you.

💯% agree, Jackson, on every point. This mindset of cloning customers, "Wait a minute, I don't have to say goodbye to the animal I loved!" ~ of course we have to say goodbye! To not do so, and pretend our beloved companion didn't die, is the opposite of honoring the dear soul that was so very precious to us! You're right that it's reductive, minimizes the value of the precious soul, which btw, is NOT the same soul in the replicated body. It demeans them by saying "See? You are replaceable!" ...instead of treasuring and honoring their uniqueness and their irreplaceable love in our lives. More important is the abuse of animals to gestate, cloning more animals that will need homes, and for me as one that worked in the cat rescue world, the impact of cloned animals on efforts to find homes for the precious souls already in shelters. Cloning is a great sadness for the millions of homeless souls!

I would definitely pay any amount to have my Sam back, even selling my house to afford it, but a clone wouldn't be my Sam. A clone is not a copy of the personality, it's just an artificially induced identical twin and one with a higher risk of genetic conditions. I think cloning sentient life is wrong.

Very eloquently put. I had no idea this was going on. It's terrifying

I completely agree with you Jackson. There are too many animals in shelters, on the streets, and we don't need to add to those numbers by cloning our pets when those clones will never be the same pet we lost without our shared memories.

Thank you Jackson, I never knew this was a thing. After watching your video I Googled this subject for my country (UK) and am shocked there is a company here doing this since 2018. Their partner is Viagen. Absolutely disgusting, inhumane and preying on people's grief to relieve them of huge amounts of money. I' m still grieving for my adopted boy and I will adopt again. I don't want a clone as it wouldn't be him. It saddens me this exists in our world.

As someone who lost their cat, then their dog within a period of 4 months apart last year, I still agree with you 100% I think another part of the problem is the fear and demonization of death in the western world be it humans or pets (especially the US). The vast majority of the population is so fixated on defying death and treating it like a disease, rather than accepting the inevitability and valuing the life we have. Hell, there's people that will look at this comment and think, "omg, she's so morbid, how could you say that??" Because without death and grief, life and love are pointless - they mean nothing if there's no end. We would do well to look at the many ways the rest of the world, and even ancient cultures, view death and take some advice from them. Great video Jackson! 💜

You will always know deep down, that the clonse is a clone. A lookalike, might even have the same behaviour due to the DNA cloning, but you will always know, THIS is not the one you lost. But it will remind you of it. As much as I want to believe, it's a nice thing for obvious and mulitple reasons, I don't like it :/ Let the soul of your lost one rest, grieve, mourn, hold your loved ones dear and close in your memory and heart and eventually, instead, give another animal in need a lovely home. It doesn't seem like much, but for that potential animals, a new forever home means the world! Pls

My first reaction was horror that this exists. My second reaction was to burst into tears thinking of my beautiful rescue cat who was saved from a very harsh life and whose love, gratitude and unique personally is absolutely irreplaceable. He himself, as himself, with his own experiences and his relationship with us, is precious beyond description and could never be replicated. We are so lucky to have him in our life, for as long as any of our lives continue.

Thank you Jackson, I agree 100%! These companies are relying on the fact that only nature shapes our pets, when the fact is that both nature and nurture factor into who our furry friends are. If you had a wonderful experience with a certain breed of dog, hold onto those memories and maybe adopt another of the same breed. If you do that and raise them with similar love and care you will more than likely have another wonderful partner. I have had animals that knee jerk I would love to have back, but that will never be a reality, I will always remember them fondly and feel lucky for the time we had together.

Every animal is an individual. Soooo many animals out there are desperate for homes. If we clone, it is as bad as unethical breeding. Take home a new puppy or kitty or both and enjoy their unique personality. Plus although you might reproduce the exact DNA, you cannot reproduce the exact environment. You are not the same person as you were when you got the original animal. This new creature will not be identical because they will not have the exact same experiences. They do not have the exact same owner cause you are not who you were 10 or 20 years ago when you got that pet. You probably don't have the same people in your life who might have interacted with that pet. You probably don't have the same pets who might have had an impact on that original pet's personality. The human animal bond is special, unique, and dynamic so appreciate it everyday as it is not repeatable.

I have had many cats over the years, some I’ve felt more of an attachment to than others but they are all special. Once I had a cat who I bonded to the moment he was born. We had such a great relationship that others wished they could have a cat like that. However, as amazing as he was, every cat I had before or since has been amazing too, just in different ways. I would not trade them for anything. They had qualities I’d say were superior to him in certain ways. He will always be the most special to me, but I’m grateful to all those other cats. The one I have now just so happens to have a lot of qualities he did. But that’s the breed. She is a lynxpoint Siamese. She is as not as much a people pleaser as he was, but like him she has a huge and very specific vocabulary. I think hers is a lot larger. I love her dearly and can’t imagine my life without the unique gift she has made to it. And having him in my life before makes me appreciate her more. So cloning? I see no advantage in it. My baby now is a rescue and is five years old. It breaks my heart that anyone gave her up. All I can say is they didn’t appreciate what a gem they had. I thank God for her everyday. And when she is gone I will thank God for the next unique treasure that comes into my life

I love all my pets dearly, both current and past, and I just can’t imagine letting their death close me off from finding another animal that may be totally different from them but has so much love to give. Building those new relationships with those new personalities is part of life and I love that all of my pets have been different personalities.

This one really affected me. It hurts to loose a soul mate, but thinking about mine now that she is gone- the memories are precious and I visit them often. I would never want to try to recreate the time I had with her. Instead, I brought home another that needed and deserved love, and one day I will cry for him as I do when loosing all of my fur babies. Their memories will be just as precious. For me, the thought cloning just sullies that bittersweet beauty of pet companionship.

We owe our faithful friends our grief and pain when they pass. It's because of them, not their clones, that made us happy and felt loved.

I absolute agree with every Point You made. Every single living Thing on this Earth is precious, because It's special and unique. Cloning takes that away and makes Live exchangeable. Humanity lacks the mentally and emotional matureness to play with such major Things. We show that clearly every Day, over and over again. Just because We're able to do It, doesn't mean We have the Right to.

I lost my soul-cat "Koo-Koo" close to 10 years ago. I had him 20+ years. I think about him now and can still cry, esp. the day I put him down. Koo-koo still is my greatest grief. I kept a tooth in hopes of cloning him some day, and it's still in my safe. Your message is so right on, and it won't be the same "Koo-Koo" anyway. I have a new kitty, "Mama," and will keep giving her the love I had for my long lost "Koo-Koo." Thanks for the video, and yes, they prey on grief, and it's terrible.

I had an amazing cat that we adopted from the shelter when I was 3 and he was estimated to be 2 (found as a stray). From the time we got home with him until I went out of state for college, he was my shadow when I got home from school. Sadly, he died my senior year of college of old age. I still miss him very much despite it being years later. However, setting aside the massive and many ethical problems, I would not clone him even if I could for a few reasons. One, I feel that I owe it to his memory to adopt another cat because shelter pets deserve as much love as he recived. And two, as you mentione, while they might look alike, I think his experiences both before he was adopted and after made him the amazing cat he was and that's one of those intangibles that DNA can't influence. His name however has been "retired" so no other animals that I adopt will have his.

I certainly don't want to condemn the science of genetic cloning outright, because I do think there are areas in which that technology and research could potentially be world-changing in a beneficial way. The world of pets just isn't that place, and never will be.

It has been more than 2 years. But there isn't a day that I don't miss Misty. Sometimes I think that if cloning can bring her back, I will do it! But, deep down I know the clone is a totally different cat,.While sharing Misty's gene, will not share her personality. And I know this is NOT fair for the clone to exist in this world with a single purpose to be a replacement for another cat. Death gives life meaning. And I'll need to learn to move on.

Thank you for making this video. I lost my animal soul mate 💔 16 years ago. My life isn't conducive for another and so I really enjoy your content and vicariously having animal soul mate(s) through your videos and others. This idea makes me ill. I hope to adopt again in the future and I know Captain my little dog would be delighted to know I had found another animal soul mate.

I never write in comments, but in this case I just had to support this. All my cats have been rescues, I grieve for all that have passed still. But then the next one comes along and in time you find one day you love them as much as the ones gone before. You are 100% correct: from day one they are brought up differently, it‘s not going to be the same animal. Love, grieve then rescue another.

I just burst into tears while watching this! I can't believe how unethical and selfish humans can be. This is absurd... I wished my orange boys, Ginger & Cashew could have lived forever, but i respect life, nature and its experiences. We should always want to give other pets a chance to live an amazing life with us, just like the ones we've lost ❤

I wholeheartedly agree with you. Last week I had to say goodbye to my dear little Fluffy, she had an inoperable cancer at only 8 years old. There is no way on this earth that I would consider cloning as she is irreplaceable even with a clone, quite apart from the fact that in order to get that clone a cat or cats would be subjected to unecessary procedures just so that I wouldn't have to grieve, which, although devastating, is a natural process. I also believe animals have souls and that a clone wouldn't have that same soul.

Agree completely! Cloning is basically just like breeding. I'd never clone my cat, a clone just wouldn't be him, it would have a completely different soul and everything. He'd rather I rescue another kitty like him instead, I'm quite sure. I didn't even know all of that stuff about Dolly the sheep dying so early and Snuppy the dog dying at the same age from the same causes. This is such an interesting video.

"The love we had for these animals will result in profound grief. That is also part of a relationship, part of relationships. Grief then has to be incorporated into our lives. We carry the memory as we carry grief. We carry love as we carry grief. That's the cycle." Needed to hear this.

I completely understand and relate to being attached to a deceased pet. I've thought to myself many times, how much I miss my friends and would love to be able to see them again. But knowing the grim reality behind the process, I could never be ok w it. Also, it's not literally the same cat or dog. Even if they're genetically identical, they still haven't lived the same experiences, so it feels like trying to synthetically re-manufacture that bond. I also like to think that my friends that are no longer with us would prefer me to give a warm, loving home to other kitties. This is not the way, imo.

I’m so glad Jackson has a good ethical framework. I trust him so much more after this video

My heart is so broken to know that this unethical practice is taking off. When my beloved cat dies someday, I know that I will be devastated and forever changed. I have had her since she was my four-week-old, emaciated foster who came to me from the streets, covered in fleas. She was the kitten I didn't want because she was a girl (and I thought about keeping one of the males from her foster litter). She was quiet, and I preferred loud cats. But somehow, she managed to wriggle her way into my heart, and I will love her for the rest of our lives. She has become my emotional support animal and helped me get through a very stressful time in my life. She is going to grow up with my future kids. She has helped raise a litter of foster kittens, and I know she'll help with more in the future. So all of this is to say that when she is gone, I will be devastated. But if I tried to clone her, I would be disrespecting our beautiful life together and her very origins: she came to me as an unwanted street kitten, too small and defenseless to care for herself. I will not subject another kitten/cat to death or suffering because I cannot handle my beloved feline passing. When she is gone, I will help other animals who need me in her memory. As a vegan, I am never surprised by people's cruelty to animals, but I am amazed at all the ways humans continue to disrespect and abuse animals, even the ones they claim to love.

Thank you for doing this video. My husband and I were trying to get pregnant or adopt a baby when we rescued our first cats. I loved them like they were my children. So much so that I once said that if I had a choice-1. I could adopt a child that I somehow knew would be well behaved and we would be perfect for them or 2. I could clone one of my cats, and it would cost the same, I thought that would be an impossible decision. Once all of my fur babies were gone, in my grief, I had rescued 3 brothers within a month of the death of the last one. After doing this, I never thought of cloning again. The love I have had for each of my cats is different from the love I have had for any of the others. I would have missed out on experiencing these different kinds of love had I cloned a previous fur baby. I would have missed out on so many different personalities and quirks, and different types of cuteness. And my 3 brothers would still be living out in the cold, probably dead by now. How my heart aches when I think about this, and when I think of all of the poor kitties without homes in shelters or on the streets who didn't ask to be born without a human family, suffering from sicknesses without a human companion to care for them and nurse them through an illness like I did with my beloved Shadow who lived through it because he was cared for! I am crying for them now. I think both cloning AND breeding should be outlawed until there are no pets living in shelters and on the streets. For the life of me, I can't understand why ANYONE would pay money for a certain breed when there are so many cats and dogs out there who would be so grateful and give them unconditional love just for a chance at a real home.

Well like I said on Instagram, we can't recreate a soul. That's what we really fall in love with is their soul. And this is any kind of love. Whether it be a person or animal it's their soul we love. That's what truly makes us who we are. God makes us all individually for a reason. And we need to understand that we are not in control of everything. We as human beings have our limitations. Spot on accurate Jackson! 🙌

I don't believe that you can clone souls. So it's not going to be your old cat. And there are so many cats in the shelters now that need loving homes! That would be the best thing you could do!

All my furkids were UNIQUE in their own special ways. That is what defined them in our shared soul experiences. We experienced a journey at that time that won't be replicated. No matter how much I loved them and wanted their lives to continue after they passed away, it still wouldn't be the same unless I went back in time and relived things identically. If I want to experience more of these lives that come with rescued pets, then I have to continue adopting more. No considerations for cloning.

I'll admit, my first thought was "where can I get this done". I don't think I've ever changed my mind so fast. This is a new record in the world of mindchanging.

I absolutely, most definitely agree with you. There are so, so, so many too many animals in need of our love and care to be wasting money on a delusion because it could look like the lost pet, but it doesn't have the memories and experiences which is that make the bond with us. Adopt is always the most loving, kind, caring and humane thing we can do to honor our lost pets.

I feel that cloning pets is a con. The cloned animal will be very similar but will not be identical. So much of what makes an animal unique is developmental, not genetic. The pattern of a tabby cat's fur, for instance, will not be the same as its clone-parent; that is determined in utero. It may look similar, but it will not be identical. Most importantly, the personality will probably not be the same. That depends upon upbringing and early experiences. With a different mother, different siblings and a different environment, I don't see how there's any chance of recapitulating your lost pet. The implicit promise of bringing back your dead pet is a lie. It seems to me that the companies running these scams are exploiting the grief stricken and leaving the many, many animals languishing in shelters without a hope. It seems healthier to me to grieve, move on and find a new animal companion to share all that love with.

I cried for the majority of this video. Ever since I adopted my cat I've always had his death on my mind and my goal is to give him a fulfilling long and healthy life. I agree with you, Jackson and this video really touched me. Thank you as always! Also, would love to see a video about dealing with the grief of losing a pet.

Thank you Jackson for another importante and very informative video! I had no ideia that Barbara Straisand had cloned one of her dogs. I had no idea this cloning company existed and the absurd of money they charge. I had no ideia of the insanity number of animals that have been cloned already by Viagen and all that involves the clonning of this animals. I am horrofied and really sad by all this information! And also for the fact that there are people out there that instead of giving a home to another dog or cat when their loved one dies, are even allowing more animals to be born and be in need of a home. What are this people thinking of? If it is consider illegal and imoral for humans why is it not for animals? Even if I had the money I would not even consider doing something so selfish and absurd! Again thank you Jackson for bringing light into this subject and also thank you for being against it! You are a loving, caring and amazing human!🙏🏻💗

Wow, that was such a beautiful message about love and grief. I've rarely heard it explained so perfectly, you genuinely brought a tear to my eye.

As much as I love my fur babies and I know my heart will be crushed when they pass away....I don't feel right about cloning them. 🥺💔 Every animal is unique in their own special way and they have their own quirks. ❤😊

Thank you for this! Immediately as you mentioned the fact that potentially there are 2 litters before you may get your clone, I lost any enthusiasm for the prospect of cloning. Adding to shelters, overpopulation and more unwanted animals in this world is a resolute "no"!! Most importantly, your point that the life experience of the cloned animal will never be the same. That's the key. Our life experience makes us, why should it be any different for our animal companions? And most certainly, the clone might have similar characteristics, but it'll never be the same soul. Enjoy being in the present moment with your animal soulmate while you still have them. I myself am cognizant and thankful for every precious moment I still have with mine. It's the most loving, honest and uncomplicated relationship I've ever had. No to cloning!!

I live in Brazil, here the Animal Planet channel broadcasts My Cat From Hell (Meu Gato Endiabrado) every Caturday afternoon, 3 episodes in a roll, which I always find a way to watch. Now I'm binge watching your KZfaq channel. Great catente!