Dog owners are passionate about their canine companions, and losing them can be devastating. Some dog owners have found creative ways to keep a piece of their pet with them always. Some frame pictures, some keep ashes, and now dog owners can even go as far as having their canine companions' DNA turned into a work of art.
The idea for DNA11 came to Nazim Ahmed and his friend Adrian Salamunovic after Ahmed offered to show him what his DNA would look like on paper.
One quick cheek swab and several weeks later, Ahmed returned with the image.
Both men thought the concept was really neat and that the finished product looked like a piece of modern art.
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They formed the company DNA11 as friends and family began requesting portraits of their DNA.
The friends never expected that they would begin getting many requests to create artwork using DNA from clients’ pets.
Salamunovic says they’ve now done artwork with DNA from cats, dogs, horses, and even one Bengal tiger.
He says they can also do small animals and lizards too. Salamunovic says they can make artwork out of the DNA of any mammal.
Although they’ve only recently begun advertising their pet DNA portraits, these animals have actually been a large part of their business since its inception in 2005.
The process is very simple.
Customers select a size and color for their print through DNA11’s website, and a cheek swab kit is sent to their home address.
After the customer collects the sample, they place it in the included packaging and mail it back.
Approximately five weeks later, they will receive their pet’s DNA as a beautiful work of art.
Salamunovic’s favorite thing about their products is that they are excellent conversation pieces because everyone who sees them is curious about what they are.
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DNA11 has a secure collection, processing, and tracking system to keep all customer information private.
They only use an anonymous six-digit serial number, no names, to track the samples, and all samples and products are created and framed by DNA11.
There are no third-party companies involved. Also, all samples are destroyed after the lab processes them.
The entrepreneurs also create custom works of art with fingerprints and lip prints from kisses.
Currently, DNA11 has 3 locations with about 60 employees, and they’ve produced over 10,000 custom portraits. They deliver online orders to almost 30 countries.
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