Nuclear transfer in cattle is associated with high levels of embryonic mortality and often with congenital malformation. Chromosomal abnormalities are a well-known cause of pregnancy failure and congenital malformation in humans, but their relative contribution to pregnancy failure and congenital malformation in cloned embryos and calves is largely unknown. This paper reviews existing literature on the chromosomal constitution of bovine embryos produced by fertilization in vivo and in vitro, parthenogenetic activation, and nuclear transfer. The published data suggest that chromosomally abnormal cells are common in embryos; however, the frequency reported varies with the method of embryo production. The most frequently observed deviation from the diploid karyotype was mixoploidy resulting from aberrant cell division causing polyploidy in a variable proportion of the embryo's cells.