Introduction
Are you wondering what breed of dog your dog maybe? A DNA test will help you determine what breed of dog you may have. While there are many DNA tests available, how do you choose which one? Wisdom DNA tests are great tests at giving you not only information on what breed of dog that you have but also other important health information about your dog.
What is DNA Testing for dogs?
DNA is found in every person and pet. This is a unique set of code what makes each person and animal different. There are no two sets of DNAs that match. This is like the human fingerprint and totally different.
DNA testing your dog will tell you their heritage. Since your dog gets ½ of their genes from their mother and ½ from their father, you can tell a lot about your dog’s heritage based on their DNA.
DNA tests will examine your dog’s DNA and match this with a database of thousands of other dogs. This helps determine the breed of dog that you have as well as any markers that will predispose your dog to disease or other health issues.
Wisdom DNA test
Wisdom DNA tests are one of the most popular DNA test kits for dogs. This test kit test back 3 generation and is great for determining the breed of your dog for not a lot of money.
Wisdom DNA offers two different DNA testing kits. They are:
Wisdom Panel Essential
This test kit includes tests over 350 breeds, types, and varieties of dogs that they will compare your dog’s DNA to. It also tests for over 25 genetic conditions and over 35 traits. This helps give you a lot of information about your dog at a lower price than their premium panel.
Wisdom Panel Premium
If you are interested in the most information that you can about your dog, then the Premium panel is the one that you want to choose.
This is the most comprehensive dog DNA test available. This test screens for over 200 genetic conditions, as well as checking your dog’s DNA against 350+ breeds, types, and varieties to help determine the breed of your dog and over 35 different traits.
Not only does this panel give you this additional information, but it also provides you with a free call to one of their licensed veterinarians to discuss these health findings. They can discuss the
What does Wisdom DNA testing Kits Tell You?
Your Dogs Ancestry
Your dog’s family tree will be important in telling you what breed of dog that your dog has. Wisdom DNA test will test your dog’s DNA against over 350 different unique breeds. These are all the different breeds that your dog’s DNA is tested against.
While this test will not link you with other people that are DNA relatives to your pet, it can help prove who your puppy’s parents are if you also have their DNA results.
Traits
Each dog is different. These differences are due to the different genetic traits that they carry. Each dog will get one set of DNA from their mother and one set from their father. These genes will make up the different traits that you see in your dog.
The wisdom DNA test will give you an insight into the different traits. The traits that you will see are coat color, coat length, muzzle shape, and much more. Knowing these traits will help you be able to determine what your dog’s puppies may look like.
Health issues
This test will highlight different health issues that your dog may have. Learning these different health issues that may affect your dog would allow you to be able to monitor for any health issues and can even be proactive about preventing certain things. Some breeds are known for having certain diseases; knowing that your dog is one of these breeds, you can closely monitor them and even test for different diseases every year to see if they do have any of these issues.
Veterinary Consult
After you receive your DNA test result, you can discuss these findings with one of Wisdom’s veterinarians. These veterinarians can go over the results and help you plan what another testing your dog may need. They can also discuss potential diseases that your dog’s breeds are known for and what you can do to help prevent these diseases from occurring in your dog.
How do I use this test?
This test kit is very easy to use. You will receive a box with everything that you need. In this box, you will have an instruction book that will tell you how to register your test kit so you can track and receive your results, as well as instructions on how to use this test kit.
Swab their Cheek
The cheek swab will come in a package. Make sure that you carefully open this package, as you will need to put the swab back into the package after you use it.
Take the swab and rub it on their gums for about 30 seconds. It is best if you have a friend or family member help hold your dog still when you do this. Some dogs are great at sitting still, while others do not like the swab in their mouth.
After you have swabbed their mouth, allow this to dry for about 5 minutes. After it is dry, you can replace the swab back into the package.
Mail-in the testing Kit
Once the swab is back into the package, place it back into the box and send it back to the company. This comes with a prepaid label that you put on the box, seal it up and place it in the outgoing mail.
Register Your Test Kit
Before sending the test kit back in, make sure that you register your test kit. There is a website to create an account. Once the account is created, you can activate your kit. After you have mailed your kit back, you can start to track your test kit’s progress. As soon as they have your dog’s DNA complete, you will receive an email with a link to see all their information.
This test is very user-friendly and easy for anyone to use. The clear instructions and easy test kit to send back make this test a breeze to get your dog’s DNA results
Why Choice Wisdom DNA test
Wisdom DNA testing has been around for many years. This means that they have a large database to compare your dog’s DNA against. The larger the database, the more likely that your test results will be accurate.
I have used the wisdom DNA test on many different dogs in my clinic. Every time that I used the test, I gave no help to the company on the breed that I thought made up the mix of that dog. Each test result was very accurate on the breed of dog that I suspected the dog was.
This test can easily be purchased online or in many pet stores. It is very easy to use. I have even had a few non-tech savvy clients use this test kit successfully on their pets.
Genetic Testing for Dog Breeders
Wisdom DNA testing offers a DNA test for breeders to determine any health issues in their breeding line. This helps these breeds breed only the healthiest dogs to make very healthy puppies. This test checks for over 200 different health conditions.
This test also checks for different traits, coat colors and patterns, body type, and body features. This will help give breeds the possible looks that they may get from their breeding pair.
Pros and Cons of Wisdom DNA Testing
Even though wisdom DNA testing has been around for many years, there are some cons of this test that other brands of DNA tests that do better. These are the great things about wisdom DNA testing that I love and where I see that they fall a little short on.
Pros
- Wisdom DNA tests have been around for a long time
- The test covers over 350 different breeds, types, and varieties
- The test kit comes with two swabs to help make sure that your results are accurate
- Partner with animal rights groups
- The premium test includes over 200 canine health conditions
- Fast turnaround on results. Can get results in as little as 2 to 3 weeks.
- Great customer support. Can email or call with any questions
- The website contains great information about DNA testing for dogs
CONS
- Some test includes relative finders so you can contact owners of potential siblings of your pet.
- Genetic marker testing is not as detailed or in-depth as other test companies.
When Should I Not have my Dog’s DNA Tested?
While knowing your dog’s breed is usually a great thing, there are a few times where it may be best to just not know, such as:
- If knowing the results will give you anxiety. Sometimes knowing what breed of dog your dog is will then give you an idea of any health issues that your dog may have. For some people knowing this information causing them stress and cause them to constantly worry about the future health issues of their dogs
- Have breed restrictions. If you live in an apartment or area where certain breeds are not allowed, knowing their breed may cause you to have to move or having higher rent. It may even force you to not be able to live in a certain area.
Just because your dog has a genetic mutation and is predisposed to a disease does not mean that your dog will develop these conditions. This just means that they possibly could develop this disease and pass the condition to any offspring. Before deciding about the health of your dog, it would be best for you to discuss these findings with your vet who has examined your dog.
Why Should I have My Dog’s DNA tested?
There are a few reasons that you should not have your dog’s DNA tested. There are many reasons that you should, such as:
- Can monitor for health issues. If you know that your dog is predisposed to a disease, you can monitor for signs of this disease. It would also be great to share this information with your vet, so you and your vet can develop a plan on when to start testing for any predisposed issues to help keep your dog healthy and happier for longer.
- Can get pet insurance for your dog. Knowing that your dog may develop a certain disease, you may want to get pet insurance to help pay for these issues. Certain conditions such as cancer or hip and joint issues can mean very costly vet bills. Having pet insurance will help offset these costs. Being able to sign your dog up before the issues occur will let pet insurance pay for these issues. If you wait until these issues are found in your dog, pet insurance will not cover it due to it being a pre-existing condition.
Is genetic testing just for dogs?
No, Wisdom DNA test also offers a test for cats. This test checks for over 40 different health issues that your cat may have. It also can show different traits and the overall breed of your cat. With the more information that Wisdom DNA tests collect, the more updates that you will receive on your cat’s DNA.
This test will also tell you your cat’s blood type. This is very important if your cat ever needs a blood transfusion.
Final Thoughts
Wisdom DNA test kit has been around for many years. This gives it a large database of dog breed DNA to compare your dog’s DNA against to help determine their breed. While it may not give you as detailed genetic markers as other testing or help you find other pets that your dog is related to, it is a great test at helping determine what breed of dog you may have and what issues that they may be predisposed to.