I would love to do a dna test but the doggo ones I’ve heard aren’t very reliable and are based more on the pictures of the dogs you send in with the sample than the actual dna. That was a couple years ago though… is it different? Is it actually more accurate?
When I had one done on my dog, I hated that they asked for a photo, and for what breeds you believed were predominant. Why do they need to know that, or have a photo, to do that? Sure enough, I said I think she's mostly English Springer Spaniel (I can't remember what photo I sent, this is just a random photo for you to see her):
And sure enough, the results came back as mostly English Springer Spaniel, with a good chunk of Border Collie, and a grandparent that was a supermutt, with less than 5% DNA of a bunch of other breeds, like Pointer, terrier etc, I can't remember them all now or find the results, and remember this was seven or eight years ago.
I got it done since it was only a cheaper DNA test given to me as a gift, because I could see she was mainly Springer, but not purebred Springer (I used to live with a breeder who had a big pack!) and I suspected she had a good amount of Border Collie, but maybe something else in there too, and it was only for the fun of it. I don't know for sure that the results are reliable, and the breeds mentioned are the same as other dog fanatics have guessed when I was a member on a dog training forum years ago. As the years pass, their DNA databases should have grown, but since it doesn't really matter to me what breeds she is, love her to bits, it's just fun to try to work it out, and see what results you get!
It did also include mentions of the common health conditions that can crop up in the predominant breeds they say are there, which is useful to keep an eye out for symptoms. Like, if yours does have Corgi or Dachshund DNA, it's good to be aware of their vulnerabilities and aim to avoid or detect common health conditions that have arisen in those breeds.
I'd do it again if I ever get another mixed breed dog in the future, but I'd research the different testing labs and check out their methodology and reviews first, and decide if you just want to go for a cheapy test that might be telling what they think you want to hear just for the fun of seeing what it says, or go for the one of the more expensive ones if they seem to be more reliable. Plus take the results with a grain of salt, while relying on what you see in the dog you have in front of you when it comes to training methods, drives, etc. Like if the dog acts very independent and hound like, then it's best to work with those traits, rather than try to turn it into a retriever or obedience champion because the results say lab or collie, you know what I mean?
Do you think you might get a test done?
