The world's first puppies have been conceived using in-vitro fertilization (IVF). This is the same method that leads to the births of tens of thousands human babies every year.

"Dog reproduction is very, very different from that of other mammals," said Alexander Travis, an associate professor of reproductive biology, who helped lead the work of making the first test-tube puppies.

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The idea of the method is not to get more puppies, it is to be able to genetically manipulate of making puppies to remove disease-causing genes for the future to help save endangered canine species, according to the team at Cornell University's College of Veterinary Medicine.

According to NBC News, it took decades of work to figure out how to produce a puppy in a test tube because the reproductive cycle of dogs is a little bit different.

"When an egg ovulates, it gets released at a very immature stage compared to other species," Travis said.

The Cornell team came up with a way to make it work by using a bath that includes the chemical magnesium, and finding the right stage of egg cell to use, and the result is seven puppies.

According to BBC "Since the mid-1970s, people have been trying to do this in a dog and have been unsuccessful. Now we can use this technique to conserve the genetics of endangered species", said by the lead researcher Dr Alex Travis, from Cornell's college of veterinary medicine.

In records, the puppies were born in the summer. The puppies' existence was first kept as a secret until the findings were formally announced to the scientific world this week.They have reportedly that the names are Ivy, Cannon, Beaker, Buddy, Nelly, Red and Green, and all but one has gone to a new home. 

TagsTest-tube puppies, new research, mature stage, in vitro fertilization, same method, seven puppies