Saw an interesting commercial on the tube:
www.embarkvet.com
For $149 you can get a DNA test on your dog. Or if you want to save a little $$$, the cheap test is $99.
Lots of info about your dogs ancestry and possible health issues. So they say...
So.... Dog owners, whos a good boy and did the test? What were the results?
Would you even contemplate doing this? I can it see it as a tool to verify breeder papers or pedigrees, maybe.
And I am cat person so no skin in this game. But you know it will cat DNA testing soon!

I will not test my loving mutts.

quote:

Originally posted by Krazeehorse:
I will not test my loving mutts.

Agree ^

I’ve thought about doing it. Why? I am considering breeding my Schnauzer and I wouldn’t feel right breeding my dog without doing a DNA test. He also has heterochromia eyes and I am curious as to how that happened.

We got our last pound dog tested out of curiosity and also to see if there were some specific health issues due to genetics.
The health problems were negative. The breeds confirmed 1/2, the other half was a bit of a surprise.
Ours was around $80 at that time.

I know people that have done it. I wouldn't.

There are some good reasons for DNA testing. Our Labradors are out of a high-end line of UK hunting Labs. I believe all the sires and dams are tested before they are bred or imported to the U.S. for breeding. No one wants to pay top dollar for a pup with genetics for disease and infirmities in their DNA.

When I was still at the PD, importers of working dogs were also providing genetic tests. The working life of those dogs are short enough without buying genetic problems that will shorten their working lives. My horses were also tested to determine if they carry the HYP gene which is likely fatal to any offspring.

If you are not sure, ask your vet

I buy labs from people who do genetic tests, but I don't do them personally.

Nor do I do it for myself.

We rescued a pup from a shelter and was told she was a mix of Golden retriever, Chow, and German Shepherd. Our main vet thought maybe some husky also. Test results came back as Australian Shepherd, Shitsu (sp?),and Miniature Pinchure.

2 Veterinarians and well experienced dog trainer all laughed at that so my wife contacted the testing company. They asked for pictures of the dog which my wife sent. Their Veterinarian agreed that she LOOKED like the rescue's stated mix so they sent a second test swab. 2an test came back the same as the first one with bulldog added in.

I don't have any trust in dna testing at all.

I do not get why anyone would want to do this. Maybe you want to know if your dog is somehow related to the Royal Family? Or perhaps Rin-Tin-Tin or Lassie? So what if his DNA shows he's half Doberman, half Chihuahua, and half Greyhound? I mean it's not like there aren't significant personality and conformity variances within breeds anyway (except Labs of course, they are all their same goofy selves).

Perhaps if there's a medical condition, and a breed analysis might influence treatment protocols, but otherwise I fail to see the point of it.

After witnessing my in-laws horrific experience with their last three dogs I understand why someone would want to do it. I view it as a responsible thing to do for anyone intending on breeding their dog and especially if it is a breed that can be prone to health concerns. I’d never waste my money testing a Jack Russell Terrier but a breed like a Schnauzer is much more prone to health concerns.

I’ve read some fairly bad stuff about my breed generally. Toss in the weird brown and blue eyes he has and it makes me very reluctant to breed him without a DNA test.

My Vet said some of those test kits are bogus and recommend a specific company.

I haven’t really worried about it too much since his blood work recently came back perfectly fine but once I find a person with a female schnauzer I might me more motivated to get his DNA tested.

I’m certain my dogs are all Canis Familiaris. I see no need to throw money away to confirm what I already know.

quote:

There are some good reasons for DNA testing. No one wants to pay top dollar for a pup with genetics for disease and infirmities in their DNA.

I was not aware of the extent of DNA testing in show dogs until I acquired my 3rd Beagle from a show breeder. He is a show reject but so far the heathest dog I have owned. My previous Beagle had to be put to sleep from genetic kidney problems.

My wife speculated about her pound puppy (he was tiny puppy mill rescue from down south and listed as a Jack Russell mix at the pound - now he's 90lbs) for years. I bought her a DNA test one year as a gift and I think she was more excited about that than dang near anything else that I've bought her. Never mind that she could have easily purchased it herself at any time...

Regardless - everyone was wrong in their guesses as to what he was and he looks to likely have been bred to be the way he was - 4 generations of the same mix - weimaraner/treeing walker coon hound and treeing walker/pit with the dam/sire changing combos each generation (if the tests can be believed). *shrug*

Better question for someone considering this silliness. Would you be disappointed 'if' the DNA results turned out to be something you didn't expect? I love my dogs for who they are, not because of their mix of DNA. And I've had several true mutts overtime that where the best dogs ever.

I trust my breeder. Western GSDs with confirmed bloodlines back generations… the Germans are a bit fickle about their dogs, breeding and confirmation trials are heavily scrutinized.

No need to pay some data collection business.

I've had 3 of my dogs DNA tested and it was worth the money spent, I thought. The results were accurate in my opinion.The test results from the company I used also gave a profile of each Dog's specific health traits and possible future risks.

Dogs are not inexpensive anymore, outside of adopting, having a pet becomes more than a financial commitment, they are a huge emotional investment, as they become one in the part of the family, so why not test.

Think we had a member here that spend quite a bit on a new pup, get connected and then find out it was very sick. Maybe a test would have told the breeder about it's issues before selling it to someone.

After seeing two identical twins send their DNA to a popular company and received different results I kind of lost faith in the process.


If I got a dog from the pound I might do it just out of curiosity but that’s about it.

For the most part once I have the dog it’s too late to worry about potential health issues it’s mine.

I would be afraid of finding out who my dog might be related to.