Science is working in the horse industry to continue bloodlines that might otherwise die off. Smart Little Lena, Scamper and a few other horses have been cloned in order to continue the legacy and keep the money for stud fees coming in. Many ranches have based their entire breeding programs primarily on the aging stallions. Now, as of September 2012, the barrel racing legend, Frenchmans Guy, has been cloned three times. The clones are owned by the same people who own and stand the 25 year old stallion, Bill and Deb Myers.
The Myers decided to clone Frenchmans Guy because of his remarkable statistics both as a barrel racing horse and a sire of legendary proportions. He has been listed as a leading sire in the performance horse industry for the last ten years. His foals, that have gone on to compete, have earned over 4 million dollars.
Cloning creates an identical genetic replica, which allows superior animals to continue their bloodlines into the future. Viagen, a Texas based company that is known as the world leader in animal cloning, was chosen to produce the foals. Many people view cloning as the next step in breeding programs now that vitro fertilization and embryo transfers are an everyday occurrence. As genetic replicas, the clones will permit Frenchmans Guy’s superior genes to continue well into the future. Bill and Deb Myers considered that it would be good not only for their breeding program but for the horse industry as a whole. The cloned foals will produce offspring exactly as if Frenchmans Guy himself was the stallion used for the breedings. So, if breeding to this stallion seemed a far off dream, rest assured that the chance to do so will continue far into the future.
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