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With the popularity of human DNA testing, it was only a matter of time before that curiosity extended to our four-legged friends. Nothing should benefit man that shouldn’t also benefit man’s best friend, after all.
The goal with testing dog DNA, though, is a little different from human testing, which is mostly performed to find out about your ancestry and family heritage. The typical desire with dog DNA kits is to pinpoint the breeds that reside within your mutt’s genetics. It’s a question that plagues some dog owners/guardians—and one that ultimately isn’t that important, to be perfectly honest. A mixed-breed mutt’s going to have fewer genetic problems, due to its lack of inbreeding.
There’s another goal, though, that is discussed less, yet is arguably more important. DNA tests also check your companion animal for a variety of gene-specific diseases or disorders—in other words, genetic mutations. Your dog could be a carrier of these illnesses, or be at risk of developing the full-blown disorder. DNA tests can rule that out—or expose a disease before it’s a problem.
Wisdom Panel Premium
Best for Health and Breed Testing
Bottom Line:
Wisdom Panel features almost everything offered by the more expensive dog DNA testing competition, but with easier-to-understand results.
PROS
- Tests for more than 350+ breeds and 210+ genetic problems
- Postage included
- Great packaging
- One account works for multiple kits
- Excellent presentation of results
CONS
- No way to easily share data
Embark Dog DNA Test (Breed + Health Kit)
Best for Information Deep Dives
Bottom Line:
Embark is the most accurate and comprehensive canine DNA test. Although the kit provides more data than even the most dedicated dog owners may want, its medical tests alone make it worthwhile.
PROS
- Tests for 350+ breeds and 190 genetic problems
- Provides genetic age estimate
- Excellent packaging
- Postage included
- One account works for multiple kits
- Offers full, raw data
CONS
- Expensive
- Complicated results
| Sold By | Price | |
|---|---|---|
| Embark | 199.00 Save $40 With Code: HOLIDNA 11/7- 12/31 |
See It (Opens in a new window) |
DNA My Dog Breed Identification Test
Best for Budget Users
Bottom Line:
DNA My Dog is an inexpensive, easy-to-use basic pet DNA kit, but while its results are consistent, some of the information and presentation calls its accuracy into question.
PROS
- Inexpensive for the basic test.
- Postage included.
- Includes extra Life Plan service for managing canine wellness.
- Frame-worthy certificate.
CONS
- Has smallest breed database.
- No “family-tree” view of breed results or testing for genetic problems.
- Cheap packaging.
Buying Guide: The Best Dog DNA Testing Kits for 2023
We looked at three dog DNA test services to see how they worked, evaluating them for their ease of use, presentation of data, and ability to match even their own test results with consistency. The list includes DNA My Dog, Embark Dog DNA Test (Breed + Health Kit), and Wisdom Panel Premium.
Why Bother Testing Your Dog’s DNA?
For most people, the main reason to test is to be able to point at your dog and say, “Oh, she’s a mix of this breed and that breed.” It can serve as a confirmation that your expensive dog is indeed the purebred (or designer hybrid) that you paid for.
We can’t stress enough that this is mostly meaningless. You’re not going to find your dog’s long-lost relatives. Well, except for users of Embark, a service that’s added a “Relatives” tab to its results that shows other dogs in the database with shared DNA. You can’t suddenly prove your dog is purebred and petition the American Kennel Club (AKC) to let you register. (Instead, you can opt for AKC Purebred Alternative Listing(Opens in a new window) registration to get your hound into AKC run events, but that doesn’t require a DNA test.)
You could, however, use a DNA test to prove your dog’s makeup does, or doesn’t, include a breed. One company (that no longer sells a dog DNA test) claimed that its dog DNA results were used in a court case to show that a dog that was going to be euthanized for the “crime” of being a pit bull didn’t, in fact, have any pittie in him.
As mentioned earlier, the most important aspect of dog DNA testing is the genetic mutation/health checks that ensure your dog doesn’t have potential issues. We spoke at length about DNA tests with a veterinarian, Dr. Jenneka McCarty, V.M.D. She said that what she likes about the tests is that “there are things you can rule out, like dogs with neurological issues, say if they have a negative [test] for degenerative myelopathy, that gives you very specific info. You can say, ‘It’s not this.'”
That said, she questions how prevalent the genetic problems tested by these kits are in the real world. “They’re genetic diseases. Not, for instance, diabetes, which is acquired,” she said, and listed off some other maladies. “Probably a lot of what they screen for is very rare.”
That said, we’d still argue it’s the strongest reason to use a dog DNA test. The expensive ones test for around 210 genetic issues. Embark and Wisdom Panel each sell a less expensive $99 version that only checks breed information and a minimal number of health problems. DNA My Dog conversely offers genetic screening tests(Opens in a new window), around 100, separately for $139.99.
How Dog DNA Kits Work
All the kits we tried have the same basics. After you register the kit, take a swab or two of the inside of the cheek pouch of your doggie. Do this a couple of hours after they eat; the goal is to swab up as much DNA-laden saliva as possible for the labs to work with. It’s preferable to do it without a lot of kibble residue, or dogs biting the swab. The process doesn’t differ much from service to service, though Embark seems a little more high-tech with its cotton sponge inserted into a stabilizing fluid for transport. The rest are essentially cotton swabs that you let dry out, then send back.
Two of the services, Embark and Wisdom Panel, have you set up accounts on their websites, which can be used to register as many DNA kits as you like. On the site, you can access all the final data, which you can then print out and save. This can come in handy for trips to the vet. You don’t create an account with DNA My Dog, Instead, you simply register a kit to your name and email, and the company sends you a message with the results attached. If you send in a kit without registering it, you’re probably not going to get the data. All testing companies include the return shipping in their kits’ pricing.
The response times vary, with some claims of seven days, and others up to eight weeks. None of the tests we performed—a total of 12, three with each service—took more than 21 days. The labs for two of the kits are in separate parts of the US—and one (DNA My Dog) is in Canada.
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) doesn’t regulate dog DNA tests in the US, but Wisdom Panel advertises that its lab is USDA-accredited to keep up quality control.
DNA Results
You’ll get an email from the service that the results are either attached or accessible online. The companies that charge the most—Embark and Wisdom Panel—have online services where you access the results and can easily set up new DNA test kits for more pets. Most are dog-only, but as of 2021, Wisdom Panel also offers Cat DNA Test(Opens in a new window) for $129.99.
DNA My Dog’s results show various breed levels. At level one, it shows a breed listing if their algorithm finds 75 percent or more of a breed’s DNA in your dog. Yes, an algorithm is involved. This DNA process involves more software and math than it does gazing through microscopes. The results then go down to levels two through five, each requiring less and less of a percentage. For example, level five might show multiple breeds, and indicate the mix of the dog’s great-grandparents. It’s an approach that comes off as less trustworthy than the more expensive tests that list distinct percentages per breed and a family tree.
If you’re sensing that you get what you pay for with doggie DNA tests, you’re on the money. That’s because the more expensive brands, such as Embark and Wisdom Panel, have a list of far more dog breed genotypes to test against. That’s important. Dr. McCarty made it clear that the more breeds a company has in its database, the more specific the info. That jibes with my findings, as Embark and Wisdom Panel both claim to test for more than 350 breeds. Embark also checks on how much dingo, coyote, and wolf are in your pet. DNA My Dog is at the low end with 95.
The companies can all add more breeds in the future. With the popularity of designer dogs—a hybrid between two purebreds—Dr. McCarty says there may never be a cap on breeds. Eventually what used to be a mixed breed could be looked at as purebred.
How We Test Dog DNA Kits
We tested each kit three times. Once on a purebred Golden Retriever (named Griffin), and twice more on the same mixed-breed dog named Madison. I also performed a test on a pit bull pup named Clark who lives in my office, so I could check out data format changes on Wisdom Panel.
Clark
(Photo: Eric Griffith)
The first time we used Madison’s real name, and the second time we used the name she had when she was adopted: Daisy. We set up the second test with new accounts, all in another name. The goal was to see if the companies would correctly ID Griffin as a purebred, then if the services could match their own results when looking at the DNA of an old-timer mutt like Madison/Daisy.
Spoiler: The less-expensive DNA My Dog did not fare well. Embark and Wisdom Panel managed to more-or-less match when it came to looking at Madison’s genetic makeup, with only one of them (Wisdom Panel) managing an exact percentage-of-breeds replication on two tests. Both expensive tests pegged Madison as a carrier for a neurological disorder. As a spayed female it’s no big deal, but the health results could be important for you and your dog.
This is a space with few choices (one we tested in 2019, DNAffirm, is no longer sold), so take a close look at each review before making a purchase.
Once you have Fido tested, if you’d like to take a look at your own genetic background, check out our roundup of the best DNA testing kits for humans, as well as the best genealogy software and services.
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