Wisdom Panel Results – Should You Get a Dog DNA Test?
Do you ever wonder about your mixed dog’s heritage? I used to ask myself that all the time, so finally I went ahead and bought myself a dog DNA test. We went through Wisdom Panel, took the test, and had the results back in about 3 weeks.
I had a lot of fun with the results of my own dog’s Wisdom Panel test. Although my own guesses were a bit off I found it to be a great, light hearted way to end the family arguments about what sort of dog she really was. So I did it, I bought myself a doggie DNA kit and finally found out what’s in her ancestry.
What is a Wisdom Panel Kit?
Wisdom Panel is a DNA test you can buy for your dog. You simply take a sample of their DNA (swab from inside their cheek ) and mail it in. In about 3 weeks you get your results.
The test works by analyzing your dogs genetic markers and comparing it to those of the 200 breeds of dogs they have tested. These tests have been available for purchase for a few years now and they’ve greatly expanded the markers they test for. It’s not a guarantee but if you’re looking for a fun way to look into your dogs heritage it could be worth it to you.
Here’s a video explaining how guessing a mixed dogs breeds isn’t quite as easy as it seems:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QrAkgjv3Pn4
How Accurate Are Dog DNA Tests?
According to a 2008 study by the National Canine Research Council, Wisdom Panel tests were found to be 84% accurate in dogs that had two purebred parents (F1). Beyond that statistic it’s hard to accurately gauge the results. Wisdom Panel tested over 19,000 genetic markers amongst 13,000 dogs during their test development. They currently have over 200 breeds they can identify based on certain markers but there’s no guarantee you’re results will be 100% accurate.
Since the test is done through a DNA sample taken from a cheek swab the accuracy can vary depending on the quality of the sample taken. To ensure accurate results they run validation tests (repeated tests to make sure they’re obtaining the same result) through independent third party specialists.
Science aside it really is a great deal of fun. I recently found myself browsing through the community area on the Wisdom Panel site to test my visual accuracy when it comes to guessing breeds. I get the feeling I’m not the only one surprised by my dog’s results. For the most part I wasn’t too surprised but a few of them stood out as breeds I never would have guessed.
MDRI Disease Screening Now Added to Wisdom Panel Tests
If you’re still on the fence about whether or not to get your dogs DNA tested consider that it’s not just for your own curiosity – it can also be used in testing for genetic mutations.
Wisdom Panel recently added the MDRI mutation screening to all of their dog DNA kits.
MDR1 or Multi-Drug Resistance 1 is a genetic mutation found in many of the herding breeds, some sighthound breeds, and many mixed breed dogs. The MDR1 gene is responsible for production of a protein called P-glycoprotein. The P-glycoprotein molecule is a drug transport pump that plays an important role in limiting drug absorption and distribution (particularly to the brain) and enhancing the excretion/elimination of many drugs used in dogs. – Wisdom Panel
Some dogs have a very high prevalence of this mutation. 50% of Australian Shepherds are affected and 70% of Collies carry it. Because a mixed breed dog can have any of the effected breeds in it’s heritage the mutation screening test shouldn’t be limited to just purebreds.
Unexpected Wisdom Panel Results
From most of the community photos I’ve seen a mixed dogs heritage is somewhat apparent. There are a few that really stood out though; these are the wisdom panel results I never would have guessed:
Maggie from Michigan
Maggie’s Results
50% Shetland Sheepdog
25% Toy Poodle
12.5% Labrador Retriever
12.5% Mix
Spencer from Pennsylvania
Spencer’s Reults
25% Cairn Terrier
25% Great Dane
25% Pomeranian
25% Mix
Mango from Michigan
Mango’s Results
50% Chihuahua
50% Miniature Poodle
Sweetie from Michigan
Sweetie’s Results
25% Labrador Retriever
25% Mix
12.5% Basset Hound
12.5% Bernese Mountain Dog
12.5% Bichon Frise
12.5% Bouvier Des Flanders
Quincy from California
Quincy’s Results
25% Akita
25% Gordon Setter
25% Miniature Pinscher
25% Mix
Kado from Virginia
Kado’s Results
25% German Shorthaired Pointer
25% Pembroke Welsh Corgi
25% Rottweiler
25% Saluki
Buster from California
Buster’s Results
25% Chinese Shar-Pei
25% Dalmatian
25% German Shepherd Dog
25% Rottweiler
Lulu from Maryland
Lulu’s Results
50% Yorkshire Terrier
25% American Staffordshire Terrier
25% Greyhound
Izzy from Maine
Izzy’s Results
25% Irish Wolfhound
25% Samoyed
Skye from Florida
Skye’s Results
50% Belgian Malinois
25% Boxer
12.5% Siberian Husky
12.5% Mix
Testing your dog’s own DNA is a great way to end those family disagreements over what breed your dog really is. If you’ve always wondered about your dogs heritage check out Wisdom Panel’s dog dna kits – the results are quite fun and entertaining.
Dog DNA kits are also helping to prove that a dog shouldn’t be labeled by appearance alone. Many jurisdictions won’t adopt out shelter dogs if they look like a certain breed – most often a Pit Bull. These tests prove that there’s more to guessing a dogs breed than just eyeballing it.
I’ve always wanted to get my own Heinz 57 dog Laika tested though I doubt it would come back with anything other than German Shepherd & Labrador. Have you had your dog tested? Were you satisfied with the results?
Update – Apparently I’m not so good at this after all; I was only half right about my own dogs DNA results.
Are you good at guessing dog breeds?
Wow…some of those are pretty tough to believe, although I have been satisfied by the two DNA tests I’ve done.
My previous dog Lasya came back as 50/50 Chow and GSD which is what I always guessed, and Ruby’s results were 25% Jack Russell, 25% Border Collie and the rest mixed. As she exhibits strong characteristics of both terrier and herding breeds, is high energy, smart as a whip and looks like other Border Jacks I’ve seen, I have no reason to doubt it!
It’s really entertaining to look through some of those results. I can definitely see Ruby being a Jack Russel/Border Collie mix. She’s so awesome looking, makes one good looking mutt. I couldn’t imagine trying to keep up with her though. I’ve got my hands full with one GSD mix I don’t know what I’d do with a dog even more driven lol.
I did a similar post using friends’ results. Some are crazy! I have ran a Wisdom Panel on two of my dogs, and the results are interesting.
I was beyond satisfied with the results I got, and SURPRISED most of all! I would have never guessed. It was very very enlightening and I would recommend it to anyone and everyone. My black and tan stray puppy from Mexico turned out to be 50% American Eskimo! Haha. Amazing. I got such a nice explanation as well when I contacted them about the results, so I am convinced that there is a lot of truth to it.
http://instagram.com/bbmutt/
Had my dog’s DNA tested by Mars Wisdom Panel. While the results were almost completely unexpected, it makes sense in hindsight. Heck, we really had no idea what she was. Found out she has at least nine breeds in her makeup, five of which Mars were able to identify (Amstaff, Sheltie, Husky, Rottie, and Boxer) and three more that barely missed their threshold of certainty (ACD, GSD, and Whippet). It all makes sense even the ones that didn’t quite reach that threshold. You can see a little of all those breeds in her in either appearance or behavior. Quite fascinating.
Incidentally, of all the guesses we fielded from friends and family (which included everything from Bull Terrier to Border Collie to Kelpie), only one person correctly identified one of the breeds in her makeup (Husky). My father is a vet and even he had no idea.