Tag archives: color

Paw Print Genetics is excited to announce the release of our new Coat Color/Trait and Disease Genotype Probability Calculators on our website. These new tools allow breeders to calculate the possible outcomes from potential breeding pairs based on their genetic test results. The Coat Color/Trait Calculator can be used by the general public and both the Coat Color/Trait and Disease Calculators can be used by Paw Print Genetics customers specifically for their dogs that have results from PPG testing.

Both calculators can be found on our website at www.pawprintgenetics.com. After you login, under ‘My Account’ scroll down and click on either calculator. The Coat Color/Trait Calculator can also be found at https://www.pawprintgenetics.com/products/traits/calculator/.

What do the calculators do?

Have you ever wondered what the outcome of a particular breeding might be? Will the puppies be healthy? What will they look like? What if the potential dam and sire are both carriers of a genetic disease? What are their risks of having an affected puppy? What color will the puppies be? Will they have long, short, or curly hair? For some breeders, calculating the outcome from a breeding between two ...

Our dogs, our cats, our birds. They are more than just pets – they are our family members! Today, April 11th, we celebrate National Pet Day. The ones who bring us joy, laughter, and even snuggles. What would we do without our pets? Although they may not be able to live forever, we can do our best to give them long and healthy lives. At Genetic Veterinary Sciences, Inc. (GVS), we provide resources to achieve optimal canine, feline and avian genetic health to do just this. We do this through the genetic testing that we have developed for dogs, cats and birds.

What is genetic testing?

Genetic testing allows us to look into the DNA of your pets to learn about the inherited diseases they may have. We can also genetically test to learn about traits your animal may carry for such as coat colors. Our company differs from others as we follow the standards and guidelines for canine clinical testing laboratories, based on human diagnostic standards. This means all of our testing is of the highest quality and accuracy possible.

Why should I test my pet?

A common response we receive when discussing the benefits of genetic health testing is ...

Coat color genetics can be very confusing. There are many different genes that can contribute to the overall coat color in a dog and for each gene, there can be different mutations that can contribute to color variations.  The B locus (or gene) is responsible for many of the brown coat colors seen in dogs (also referred to as chocolate or red, depending on the breed).  When performing genetic testing of the B locus, the test result is determined by examining three specific locations within the B gene of a dog, known as the b^c, b^d, and b^s. The overall B locus genotype for a dog is determined by the combination of genotypes (variations) present at the b^c, b^d, and b^s loci (locations within the B gene). 

For most genes in the dog, there are two copies of that gene, one inherited from the mom and one inherited from the dad.  The B locus is no exception in that although both parents have two copies of the B locus, the mom contributes only one copy of the B locus to each of her pups, randomly selected from her two B alleles that she carries ...