At Wisdom Panel, we believe the more you know about your pet, the better you can care for them. That’s why we’ve spent decades using genetics to help pet parents understand their pet’s unique story—from their inherited health risks to their breed mix and behavioral tendencies—so they can apply that knowledge to their pet’s life-long care.
A lot has changed since 2002, when we first started this journey. So we sat down for a Q&A with our Genetics Research Director, Dr. Oliver Forman, to get his perspective on the evolution of pet genetics—and where he thinks the future of pet genetic science is headed.
Q: How has pet DNA testing evolved over the years?
A: In short, pet DNA testing has gone from a novelty to a valuable tool for pet parents, providing insights into their pets’ ancestry, health, and behavior. When I think of that evolution, these are the milestones that played a significant role.
Early interest by kennel clubs and researchers
- Organizations like the American Kennel Club (AKC) began using a type of DNA testing to evaluate short tandem repeats (STRs) in the mid-1990s. The AKC DNA Program, established in 1996, focused on verifying parentage and maintaining the integrity of breed registries.
- During the late 80’s and 90’s, academic researchers began identifying individual genetic markers associated with specific health conditions within specific breeds. This enabled the development of tests that could screen for these risks and inform breeding practices.
Advancements in genetic research
- The first dog and cat genomes were published in 2005 and 2007, respectively, and there have been many iterations and improvements since then. This valuable resource significantly increased the rate and quality of veterinary genetic discoveries, which in turn dramatically expanded the capabilities of pet DNA tests.
- Wisdom Panel launched its first test, called Insights™, in 2007. Leveraging the best genetic testing technology and machine learning algorithms of its time, the test predicted the most likely breeds of the parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents of a mixed-breed dog based on its DNA.
Increased accuracy and comprehensiveness
- The development of technology—including microarrays and whole genome sequencing—that allowed for the analysis of larger portions of the genome increased the amount of data that can be pulled from a single test.
- Companies like Wisdom Panel have played a significant role in expanding the scope and accuracy of pet DNA testing. We have built extensive databases of canine and feline DNA, which enable more precise breed identification and the detection of a wider range of genetic markers that power health and trait prediction, and serve as a foundation for future discoveries.
A focus on health and wellness
- Today, pet DNA testing goes beyond breed identification to provide valuable insights into a pet’s health, behavior, and wellness. Tests can now screen for genetic predispositions to various diseases and behaviors, allowing pet parents to take proactive steps to manage their pets’ care.
Ongoing research and development
- Research continues to expand our understanding of pet genetics, leading to the development of new tests and improved accuracy. Projects like the Mars Petcare Biobank, the Dog10K project, and 99Lives are furthering the understanding of Canine and Feline evolution, complex disease, and longevity.
Q: What’s one of the biggest advancements in pet DNA testing
A: One of the biggest advances was the development and use of DNA microarrays. These microarrays, affectionately referred to as “chips,” enabled geneticists to go from testing just a few genetic markers to testing hundreds of thousands with just a single DNA sample.
Testing more markers not only allows more accurate ancestry tests to be built, but also allows for hundreds of disease and trait markers to be tested in parallel, and for exciting features such as relative finders and behavioral predictions to be developed.
Q. How have tests become more accurate?
When looking at dog DNA tests, there are three key components needed to improve ancestry result accuracy.
First is a large collection of reference DNA samples. Collecting DNA from many dogs of different breeds allows geneticists to catalogue all the genetic variation for each breed, providing a source of truth to compare an unknown dog’s DNA to.
Second is the ability to test for a comprehensive set of genetic markers. Think of genetic markers like pixels in an image. The more pixels the image has, the greater the resolution of the picture. The same concept applies to genetic markers and ancestry resolution.
Third, you need an intelligent and efficient ancestry algorithm to take the genetic markers from an unknown dog and compare them to the markers from the reference set to build up the ancestry prediction.
Alterations or advancement to any one of these three components impact the final ancestry result. That means, if your dog was tested twice—once before and once after a component was updated—your dog’s predicted ancestry may be different.
For example, additional markers may enable a breed that wasn’t previously identified to be found. Or if a new breed has been added to the reference panel, that breed may become part of the dog’s ancestry “picture”. The good news is that vigorous testing is carried out by testing companies to ensure any updates will result in an improved ancestry prediction and therefore more accurate results.
Q: What research questions is pet genetics poised to answer next?
A: Over the last few years, hundreds of genetic variants that cause a multitude of diseases in dogs and cats have been identified. The vast majority of these disorders are simple monogenetic disorders caused by a mutation in a single gene. The next big question for pet genetics to answer is what causes complex diseases such as different cancers, dermatitis, and so on.
This task is not an easy one, as complex diseases are caused by not only several genetic components, but also external factors such as diet, exercise, and the environment. However, this is where pet genetic tests can play a leading role. With a database of several million pets tested, health records from veterinary clinics, and community science surveys completed by pet parents, we have a unique opportunity to study vast amounts of data using a combination of machine learning and artificial intelligence to build predictive models that define the risk of different diseases for an individual pet.
Q: How does pet genetics impact pet care at home and in veterinary clinics?
At first, pet genetics was primarily used by dog breeders looking to proactively breed anyway from particular genetic disorders that affect their breed. However, the advent of complete panel testing—including ancestry, relative finders, and health tests—has opened pet genetic testing up to a much broader audience.
Pet parents can understand their pet’s health predispositions and use that information to proactively care for them. And because DNA testing is now more widely used in veterinary clinics, with some practices even including genetic tests in their healthcare plans, veterinarians are able to provide individualized advice and care. For example, if a pet has an inherited bleeding disorder identified through DNA testing, care can be tailored to account for this, especially if a surgical procedure is required.
Q: What excites you most about being part of this industry?
A: The potential! The future is very bright for the field of veterinary genetics. As more predictive models are developed, veterinary practices can leverage that information to provide the best care for each individual pet. That might mean recommending a particular diet or using personalized medicines to meet the unique needs of a pet.
We also believe that predictive models using genetics, with the appropriate toolset, will allow breeders to start to slowly breed away from some of the most common disorders in dogs, leading to much healthier and happier lives for our pets.
It has been exhilarating and humbling to have had a front row seat to the evolution of DNA testing across humans, pets, and other species. In a few short decades, the price of genome sequencing has fallen precipitously, thousands of whole genome sequences are readily available for scientific inquiry, and scientists and clinicians have a real opportunity to leverage DNA to effect meaningful changes in everyday life.
