Many pet lovers share their homes with dogs of dubious heritage. Mixed-breed dogs offer a lot of advantages – fewer incidents of genetic disorders (along with other canine health issues) is an important one. However, don’t most owners of “mutts” secretly want to know just what is Spot’s lineage.

A Rancho Cucamonga, California company is now offering dog lovers an opportunity to find out. Bill Baumgartner’s business, Accudiagnostics, offers testing in their offices, or with a convenient home kit, which will tell you whether your mixed-breed dog is really what you thought he was.

The owner of the company was inspired to offer the tests after his family adopted two dogs from the local animal shelter.He thought both dogs where German-shepherd mixes. After taking a quick swab from the animals’ cheeks and having them tested he found that he was half right. One dog was a German-shepherd/German short-haired pointer while the other was coon hound mixed with Staffordshire bull terrier.

The company is doing booming business with their canine genetic testing. Baumgartner points out that while many people are merely curious as to their puppy’s lineage, knowing a dog’s background can help with a variety of issues.

Common issues that will help pet owners include topics such as:

• caring for a sick dog
• predispositions to specific diseases or ailments like hip problems
• properly grooming your animal
• matching breeds to human lifestyles, where some breeds, like Chows, are natural biters and may make poor pets for families with small children.

Either way you think about it, love your pet for who they are. But if you really want to know their heritage, consider getting your dog’s genetics tested.

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