BioArts International Clones 9-11 Hero Dog - Owner to Receive Five Cloned Puppies June 17 in L...( Ex-police officer and certified searc...),Health

Ex-police officer and certified search & rescue manager won contest to clone beloved pet Trakr, hero of 9-11 rescue efforts

LOS ANGELES, June 17 /PRNewswire/ -- Can you clone a hero? Retired police officer James Symington, owner of the late search and rescue dog and 9-11 hero, Trakr, will receive five answers to that question on Wednesday June 17, 2009. BioArts International, a Northern California biotech company that is offering the first commercial dog cloning service in the world, will be presenting Symington with five puppies - perfect clones of Trakr - at a press conference Wednesday afternoon in Los Angeles.

(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20090617/SF33909)

Symington won the "Golden Clone Giveaway" contest sponsored by BioArts International in 2008, by writing to the company and explaining why Trakr was an ideal candidate for cloning. The company's other dog cloning clients have paid an average of $144,000 to clone their canine pets, but Symington will receive his puppy clones of Trakr for free.

BioArts International holds the sole, worldwide license for the cloning of dogs, cats and endangered species, and is partnered with Sooam Biotech Research Foundation of South Korea, the world's foremost experts in canine cloning. The cloning of Trakr occurred at Sooam under the direction of Dr. Hwang Woo-Suk, who produced the world's first canine clone in 2005.

"We received many very touching submissions to our contest, describing some truly amazing dogs," says Lou Hawthorne, CEO of Bio Arts International. "But Trakr's story blew us away. His many remarkable capabilities were proven beyond all doubt in our nation's darkest hour - and we're proud to have cloned him successfully."

Trakr was credited with hundreds of arrests and recovered more than $1
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