Doggie DNA Tests Helping Owners Find Out More About Their Pets
PITTSBURGH (CBS) -- Did you know there are DNA tests for dogs? They're helping owners find out the exact breeds of their pets. And it doesn't stop there.
You can even learn about the dog's parents and grandparents while you're at it.
Since dogs are considered man's best friend, shouldn't we want to know everything about them?
Michelle Sherman thought she knew everything about her dog, Drogo.
"He's a real playful, loving dog," she said. "He loves other dogs, he loves kids, especially when it involves food."
But even from love at first puppy eyes, there was something eating at her. Is Drogo really a mastiff mix like she thinks?
"He was a skinny, tiny 3-month-old puppy, but he had mastiff features where he had a droopier face and the eyes looked very mastiff," she said.
To be sure, Sherman took a page out the forensic files and ran a dog DNA test. A simple swab of Drogo's mouth, she mailed them off to the lab and about three weeks later she received a full family tree going from Drogo's great grandparents to him.
"He is what we call a 'box-weiler.' He's a boxer and a Rottweiler cross," Sherman said.
With no signs of a mastiff.
"It was really cool," Sherman said. "We like stood back at looked at him to see where those traits were and we watched him walk around and interact and we thought, 'Oh ok...' It was really fun to be able to see that."
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