Embark Veterinary/Amazon
If you can’t quite figure out if your dog is a dachshund, chihuahua, beagle, or all of the above, there are plenty of at-home pet DNA testing kits that will let you know what your mutt is made of. And if you’re looking to get to the bottom of your pooch’s origins—or are shopping for someone who is— you can get a top-rated kit on sale on Amazon and have it arrive by Christmas day.
For dog owners, the brand Embark has a few options for you to consider. First is the 4.7-star-rated breed identification kit, which is discounted from $129 to $99. The kit comes with a cheek swab to use inside your dog’s mouth to get a saliva sample. Once you have the sample, just send it back to the lab and wait two to four weeks for the results. The test screens the DNA against 350 breeds and varieties to determine your pet’s genetic makeup through a platform made in tandem with the Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine.
To take your investigation a step further, Embark also puts out a dog breed and genetic ancestry kit, which is discounted from $200 to $135. This one uses the same saliva sample, but it also provides health insights by screening the DNA against over 220,000 genetic markers. According to Embark, “75% of dogs are either at risk or a carrier for a genetic health condition.” In addition, the brand claims that 37 percent of dog owners change how they tend to their pups after getting the results.
Basepaws is another top-rated brand that concentrates on kits for cats. The company, which was featured on Shark Tank, offers a breed and health DNA testing kit that is discounted from $129 to $89. Like Embark, this kit uses a cheek swab that you then send back for testing, with results coming in four to six weeks. Your cat’s DNA is screened against 21 breeds, 25 traits and 50 trait markers, 45 diseases, and 65 health markers. The DNA is also used in a wild cat index to determine if your pet has ancestral connections to animals like lions, cheetahs, and ocelots.
Check out Embark and Basepaws’s at-home DNA testing kits for dogs and cats to learn more about your pet’s breeds and genetics.
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