Breed is a surprisingly complicated question, says Halie Rando, an assistant professor of computer science at Smith College who led the research. A dogs genetics may point to one breed, she says. But widely accepted breed definitions were defined in a time before DNA analysis, and Rando says that genetic testing can sometimes clash with pet owners preconceived notions about their dogs.

Even experienced humans, it turns out, are terrible at identifying breed by sight: In a recent study of 459 shelter dogs at two humane societies in Arizona and California, DNA analysis pinpointed found 125 distinct breeds, including five percent that were purebred. Nonetheless, neither the scientists nor the experienced shelter workers were able to reliably identify mixed-breed dogs, which made up nearly 90 percent of the canine cohort.

Mixed breeds can prove tricky even with DNA dataand since genetic testing relies on information about the genes of dogs with identifiable breeds, a DNA test is only as good as its genetic dataset.

As a consumer, you might value a company that is more transparent and has a diverse [DNA] panel, says Greene. He encourages consumers to do their research before submitting a sampleand double-check that the panel used by the testing company includes the breeds you suspect might be in the mix.

Even if you do get accurate information about your dogs breed, it might not be as linked to its behavior as you might think. A 2022 genetic analysis of more than 2,000 purebred and mixed-breed dogs found behavior was linked more closely to individual dogs than breeds, concluding that dog breed is generally a poor predictor of individual behavior.

Excerpt from:
Dog DNA tests are on the risebut are they reliable? - National Geographic

Comments are closed.