Many dog owners like to think that they know their pooch better than anyone else.
But that isn’t always the case – as five dog owners have found out.
The curious owners used DNA tests to find out their pet’s true breeds and see what they could learn about their faithful companions.
But from the not-so-pedigree cocker spaniel to the mystery of the lapdog who is two per cent wolf, several of the results were not what these owners expected.
For £140, the Wisdom Panel DNA tests take a sample of DNA from your dog’s cheek and compare it to a database of breed genetics.
The company claims that this can reveal everything from your pooch’s family to whether or not they are scared of water.
However, vets have questioned whether these genetic testing kits are really a good way of getting to know your pet.
To see if these pricey tests are really worth it, MailOnline’s Wiliam Hunter spoke with four dog owners who had tried the test – and even put his own dog’s DNA under the microscope.
MailOnline spoke to five dog owners who used the Wisdom Panel doggy DNA test to learn their pets’ real breeds. However, the results weren’t always what they expected
Mark Richardson’s two-year-old schnauzer George proudly poses with his DNA test
Mark Richardson and George
Mark Richardson from Emsworth in Hampshire used the Wisdom Panel DNA test on his miniature schnauzer, George, two.
He told MailOnline: ‘When we lost our 14-year-old dog Jack to cancer, we said we could never replace him but our other dog Ringo, 10, was a bit lost without him.
‘We wanted to adopt, but it was difficult to find a dog from a shelter that would have got on with Ringo, who is fairly territorial and quite anxious.
‘So we got George through a friend whose dog had had a litter of puppies.’
But the Richardson family weren’t entirely convinced George was the pure breed schnauzer they’d been promised.
Mark added: ‘He’s quite an odd dog! I’m convinced he’s more spaniel…though he looks a bit like a goat.’
The Richardsons said their two-year-old pet displays behaviour which differs from the schnauzers they had before – from scaling furniture to enjoying treats like strawberries and carrots.
Beers with the lads: Mark Richardson with George the schnauzer cooling off after a hard walk along West Wittering beach
George the miniature schnauzer turned out to be a pure breed – much to the surprise of his owners
He is also permanently scruffy and seemingly incapable of growing a ‘proper’ beard – a trait synonymous with the breed.
But Mark’s daughter Connie carried out the DNA test – and much to the surprise of the family, it transpired George was indeed 100 per cent pedigree.
Laura Parkin and Kevin
Laura Parkin used the DNA test to take a sample from her three-year-old labrador, Kevin.
Laura told MailOnline: ‘Kevin didn’t like having the stick in his mouth so we were worried that we might not have got a good enough sample at first. But it wasn’t difficult to do.’
While Laura was excited to see Kevin’s results, she didn’t expect to be shocked.
Laura says: ‘After meeting Kevin’s parents and having a copy of his family tree from the Kennel Club, we always knew that Kevin was a labrador.’
And, as she had predicted, Kevin turned out to be 100 per cent purebred.
Laura Parkin says she was always certain that her three-year-old dog Kevin was 100 per cent labrador
As Kevin’s pedigree suggested, the DNA test revealed that he was 100 per cent labrador retriever. Although Laura didn’t learn anything new, she says it was good to know that Kevin’s breeder had been honest
‘We have Kevin’s family tree and he’s Kennel Club registered so it wasn’t a surprise,’ Laura says.
‘But it is good to know the test is accurate and it confirms that the breeder is good.’
Likewise, Laura says she doesn’t think the test helped her learn anything more about Kevin than she already knew.
She says: ‘I don’t think it explained anything about his behaviour. He is a very typical Labrador!’
However, despite not finding anything overly exciting, Laura says she would still recommend the test to other dog owners.
She says: ‘The test was good it was easy to use. I think it would be good for rescue dogs to find out more about them or to make sure that the breeder is genuine.’
Louise Oliphant and Toby
Louise Oliphant, from London, says that she had always been curious to know more about her six-year-old cocker spaniel, Toby.
Louise Oliphant bought her six-year-old cocker spaniel Toby from a local farm which was breeding working gun dogs, but his behaviour wasn’t quite what she expected
‘I bought my cocker spaniel from a local farm breeding working gundogs,’ Louise told MailOnline.
‘I knew having a cocker spaniel wouldn’t be easy, given their energetic temperament, but I also knew giving one enough exercise a day would be worth the reward of an intelligent, loyal dog.
‘After having Toby for no longer than a year, I began to think he wasn’t like other cocker spaniels – he needs way more walking than expected and simply struggles to calm down in almost any setting.’
Unfortunately, that boundless energy also made getting a good DNA sample using the test kit quite the challenge.
Louise says: ‘The trickiest part was not being able to use treats as a distraction.’
To avoid compromising the DNA, Wisdom Panel’s instructions state that the test must be taken at least two hours after your dog last ate so there’s no way to bribe your dog with snacks.
‘I did have to have a family member help pin him down and distract him with a toy while I put the swab in between Toby’s cheek and gum,’ says Louise.
Having managed to get a good sample from Toby, Louise sent off the test kit and, three weeks later, received some surprising results.
Louise says that Toby was much more energetic than a cocker spaniel would be – making it hard to get the DNA testing swab into his mouth
Toby’s DNA test revealed that Toby was actually 30 per cent English springer spaniel, a much more energetic and excitable bread. Louise says that his ‘crazy nature’ now made much more sense
Rather than being a purebred cocker spaniel as Louise expected, Toby’s test revealed that he was actually 30 per cent springer spaniel.
Louise says: ‘Springer spaniels have higher energy than cocker spaniels and typically need a lot more attention.’
‘His crazy nature and inability to settle now made so much sense.’
Stephen Matthews and Pablo
In addition to telling you about your dog’s breed, Wisdom Panel also claims to predict some of your furry companion’s personality traits.
Those claims were something Stephen Matthews was keen to test out for his three-year-old golden cocker, Pablo.
Stephen told MailOnline: ‘Pablo is a nutter. I didn’t need a test to tell me that.
‘We knew Pablo wasn’t 100 per cent Cocker Spaniel, but it was interesting to learn he was a quarter Springer Spaniel. It probably explains his unusual features.
Stephen Matthews says that he didn’t need a test to tell him that his four-year-old golden cocker, Pablo, was crazy. But the DNA test did confirm reveal the origin of some of his odd behaviour
Stephen says he always knew that Pablo wasn’t entirely Cocker Spaniel, but it was interesting to learn he was a quarter Springer Spaniel. The DNA test also predicted that he wouldn’t avoid getting wet, something that Stephen says definitely isn’t correct
‘It was, however, fascinating to discover our golden cocker’s aggressive panting is ingrained within his DNA.
‘No longer can I call him lazy for suddenly getting out of breath while cuddled next to me on the sofa.’
However, Wisdom Panel’s DNA test also made some predictions that didn’t quite reflect reality.
Stephen says: ‘The test itself also suggested that he loves the wet – something everyone who has spent time with him knows to be untrue.
‘Pablo cowers from the rain and holds his bladder overnight, should we dare to make him go for a wee on wet grass.’
Wiliam Hunter and Freddy
When I first met my family’s new dog, the six-year-old Freddy, almost everything about him was a total mystery.
Freddy had been rescued from the streets in Romania and brought to the UK for adoption by the animal charity SSRAI Rescue.
As a rescue dog from the streets of Romania, no one ever knew what kind of dog the four-year-old Freddy was supposed to be. When Wiliam Hunter heard about Wisdom Panel’s DNA test it sounded like an amazing way to find out
So, while Freddy had found himself a new home, we knew almost nothing about him.
With ears far too big for his head, tiny legs, and a long brown coat he looked like no dog I had ever seen before.
So, when I heard about Wisdom Panel’s DNA testing service I couldn’t resist the chance to find out more.
Freddy can be quite scared of people so it was a bit of a challenge getting the swab in his mouth – especially since he doesn’t have many teeth left.
But after some time we managed to get a good enough sample to send off for testing.
When the results came back, it turned out that none of our guesses had even been close.
Freddy’s DNA contained 19 different breeds including 17 per cent central Asian Ovcharka, 15 per cent Chihuahua, nine per cent Segugio Italiano, six per cent Dachshund, and six per cent Fijian street dog.
What was most surprising was that many of the dogs in Freddy’s lineage are massive working dogs.
The DNA test confirmed that Freddy was a mix of 19 different breeds. Oddly the breed which made up most of his DNA is the massive Central Asian Ovcharka which grew up to 54 kg
Despite Freddy’s massive ancestors, he barely comes up to his owners’ knees. This could be because he carries two different genes which cause small legs and stature in dogs
Worryingly the test found that Freddy was at risk for a condition which can cause spine troubles in some short-legged dogs. Wiliam will definitely be asking the vet for more information about this and are glad to have caught this early
The central Asian Ovcharka, for example, grows to be between 40 and 54 kg and stands at 79cm tall while Freddy barely comes up to my knee.
Even more strangely, Wisdom Panel found that our quiet little lap dog was two per cent wolf!
However, his size might be explained by the presence of two separate genes which both cause dogs to have short legs.
In addition to letting us know what we already suspected – that Freddy was a tiny mongrel – the test also revealed some important information.
Freddy’s DNA contained one copy of a gene which is associated with chondrodystrophy and Intervertebral Disc Disease.
These conditions are common in dachshunds and cause short limbs and stature as well as early degeneration of the spinal disks.
While Freddy hasn’t shown any of the symptoms yet this is definitely something we’ll be bringing up with the vet and I feel very fortunate to have been given an early warning.
