Equine Cloning: The Goal is Breeding, Not Performance

The Goal is Breeding, Not Performance.
Eh? George Orwell would be proud of souch doublethink.
Del

I'm sorry that my title was confusing, Del.

The owners of many of the champion horses are cloning them to create breeding animals. They want to pass along the genes of their champions. (One might think they would want to create another Olympic medalist or world champion right away, but this isn't the immediate goal.)

I suppose the goal of the third generation (the clones' offspring) will be performance. But the clones are not going to be performing in the same equestrian disciplines as their forefathers.

All these horses their blood line has to be known to register them. The horses used to barrel racing are Quarter Horses usually. If the American Quarter Horse Association does not recognize a clone. How does that help in breeding purposes. None of the future offspring can be registered. And why keep a blood line alive unless it is a spectacular performer in it's field?

There is big money in the horse racing industry. Is this just a first step in letting science produce better performance?

Based on what I read, it appears that most of the breed registries are waiting to see what impact cloning will have before they make any further decisions. Animals do not have to be registered to compete in unrecognized competitions - perhaps the breeders plan on letting the clones' offpsring start there and see what happens? I can't say for sure.

As far as the reasoning behind keeping a bloodline alive - I think it's because these owners are banking on the fact that the registries may relent someday. There are probably those out there, regardless of registration status, that would pay large sums to own a piece of history like Gem Twist. If someday that translates into a gold medal at the Olympics - all the better. (I'm not sure if other countries have rules about horses needing to be registered animals to compete. In fact, I'm sure there are animals of unknown origin competing in show jumping today. I haven't done much research on where United States Equestrian Federation stands on clones.)

I highly doubt the horse racing industry (at least the thoroughbred branch) will ever accept clones into its registry - certainly not in the immediate future. Right now the only acceptable means of breeding a foal in that industry is a stallion covering a mare the old-fashioned way. Foals bred via artificial insemination and other means are not allowed to be registered and so cannot race.

Is this a start down a path better not taken. In hopes that the registries relent on their acceptance of clones. Are they not setting the base work for other science modifications. Like DNA enhancement for performance. Are they not trying to change the public view in the use of these modification.

If we except this in our animals whats the future for us? Will we sooner or later relent in allowing the DNA or cloning of man for the same reasons?

We in our breeding of kept animals are already playing with natural selection. Which all animals depend on for survival and is the bases for their evolutional change. What if we screw up? What if we are not here? Who will take care of them?

Just some thoughts.

I own a cloned stallion who is genetically identical to an elite Quarter Racing Champion gelding. I chose to produce the cloned stallion as a viable method to disseminate these proven genes to future generations through my breeding program. The champion gelding obviously didnt have a produce record but his pedigree supports his elite performance on the track and his phenotpye is highly consistent with the phenotype of a champion. Therefore, it is logical to expect that this stallion will produce high quality offspring.

He cannot currently be registered with the AQHA so we are training him as a future barrel racing horse to demonstrate the application of his speed and athleticism in this discipline. If successful, this will represent use of the technology to disseminate elite genetics at a reasonable price point to improve the quality of horses in a discipline that does not require registry. This horse's genetics are highly coveted in the AQHA and lower performing relatives still bring top dollar on the back of his performance. However, his status as a "cloned" stallion prohibits him from making a positive impact on the AQHA's highly inbred racing population.

This use of cloning for breeding to advance a population is already well established in the beef, dairy, and pork segments of livestock. Quite often, we are behind in our genetic applications in the equine industry where romance and science and economics weigh on our decision making in differing proportions.

Thanks for posting your experience, Guest. What year was your clone produced? When will his first foals hit the ground? Anything you could share about the process would be great since it's first-hand experience.

You make good points about diversifying inbred populations. They cause a lot of the problems with our breeds today.