Cloned Dog Fathers 8 Puppies

No clones needed here! Lancelot Encore can make his own offspring. According to "Today," the dog clone that a Florida couple paid $155,000 for just became a father to eight adorable puppies.

Edgar and Nina Otto had a clone of their former Labrador Retriever, Lancelot, made shortly after his death. The clone, Lancelot Encore -- whom they call Lancey -- must be making the Ottos very happy, because the decided they couldn't get enough of him.

Instead of cloning the second Lancelot, the couple decided to breed him. A purebred Labrador Retriever was surgically inseminated with Lancelot Encore's sperm, "and eight weeks later, puppies!" as Edgar Otto put it on "Today."

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The bundles of joy were born on the Fourth of July, and received patriotic names: Star, Victory, Glory, Patriot, America, Independence, Allegiance and Liberty. The dogs are currently under a breeder's care, and all are reported as healthy. Their mother will stay with the puppies until they are 8 weeks old. At that point, the Ottos will pick one of the puppies to come home with them, and the others will go out to other Lab-loving families.

The Ottos decided to breed Lancey to ensure that the offspring of a clone are the same as those from a canine of natural birth, and so far no one can spot any differences.

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"Every day is a different day in the life of a puppy," Otto said on "Today." "They grow so much. Now they're almost to the playing stage where they recognize they have brothers and sisters and they're beginning to annoy each other."

The dog lovers are looking forward to bringing a compatible and cute match for Lancey into their home, and to showering another animal with love. The chosen puppy will also be joining the seven other dogs, five cats and four birds that live with these animal enthusiasts.

While the Ottos still get scolded for the amount they paid to clone their dog, the couple just sees it as another expression of how deeply they care for their pets.

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