I would support the study of cloning, because that leads to a greater understanding of how we and our genes work. If growing people new body parts later means duplicating some rats now, I thing it's all good.
But cloning a pet, especially to "extend" its life, isn't what I'd call a good idea. For one thing, behavior isn't solely genetic, so the clone would never be the same pet they lost, even raising them the same way. Next, even if the original was cloned at a relatively young age, the clone would still be inheriting DNA that has aged, and would age according to the DNA rather than the time they have lived. Last I heard, Dolly the sheep lived to be about seven years old, with arthritis and other age-related complications. Most sheep live to be in their twenties, don't they? Imagine having ear hair and needing a new hip at twelve years old.
Just because it seems to fit the moment:
A Cloning Poem
Mary had a little lamb, its fleece was slightly gray
It didn't have a father, just some borrowed DNA
It sort of had a mother, though the ovum was on loan,
It was not so much a lambkin, as a little lamby clone.
And soon it had a fellow clone, and then it had some more,
They followed Mary to school one day, all cramming through the door.
It made the children laugh and sing, on the teachers it took a toll,
There were too many lamby clones, for Mary to control.
No other could control the sheep, since their programs didn't vary,
So the scientists resolved it all, by simply cloning Mary.
But now they felt quite sheepish, those scientists unwary,
One problem solved, but what to do, with Mary, Mary, Mary.
From some old biology notes. Personally, I prefered the section on the mouse with six parents (aka DNA donors) or the picture with a human ear growing out of another living mouse's back. Heck, the University of Utah grew a calf from conception to birth in the equivilent of a plastic bag, but nobody seems to be mentioning "growing" babies. sweatdrop
