So you’re in the market for a doggy DNA test? That’s awesome! They can reveal a ton of cool stuff about your furry friend and Wisdom panel makes great products. However, they do have a couple of different products, so let’s talk about what the difference is between them.
Some tests have more features than others, and it’s really a matter of deciding whether you want to get basic information with the budget route or if you want to pay for the premium test to learn as much as you can about your dog.
“What’s the difference when comparing Wisdom Panel 3 vs 4?
-Beanietoes Q&A
In short, while both tests will test for MRD1 and give you information on your dog’s breed. The new Wisdom Panel 4.0 test will also give you information on Exercise Induced Collapse, a dangerous medial condition. However, if you need the long answer, then keep reading to see a full write up.
DNA tests can be confusing, so we’ve created this handy chart to help you see what’s what!
| Wisdom Panel 3 | Wisdom Panel 4 | Wisdom Panel Health |
| Check Price | Check Price | Check Price |
| MDR1 Testing | MDR1 Testing | MDR1 Testing |
| X | EIC Testing | EIC Testing |
| Breed Testing | Breed Testing | Breed Testing |
| X | X | Health Screening |
What does all this mean?
- Breed Testing – Helps you to identify what breed your pup is.
- Health Screening – Screens for 150+ genetic health conditions you need to look out for.
- MDR1 Testing – MDR1 can be life threatening if your dog uses certain medications.
- EIC testing – Tests for exercise induced collapse, which can be fatal if dogs exercise too hard.
Our Top Pick : Wisdom Panel Health
This test is the best that Wisdom Panel has to offer, because it includes the ability to screen for over 150+ genetic health conditions, which the other two tests do not offer! That’s why it’s our top pick.
Having this information can be very valuable, particularly if you don’t know what breeds your dog is. For example, if you found out that your dog might be prone to some very expensive medical costs later in life would you consider a pet insurance policy?
You might want to think about it, because in the United States, total veterinary spending exceeds 28 Billion (( https://www.avma.org/News/JAVMANews/Pages/130201a.aspx )), and the average cost for an unexpected veterinary emergency is between $800 and $1,500(( https://www.cnbc.com/2018/06/14/are-you-prepared-for-a-pet-emergency-most-americans-are-not.html )).
By giving your pup a DNA test, you can actually give yourself a heads up, and consider picking up an insurance policy if your dog could potentially be predisposed to expensive health conditions like cancer, hip dysplasia, and the MDR1 mutation, which puts certain dogs in life threatening situations when they take certain prescription medications.
Regardless of your feelings on pet insurance, it’s still nice to know what to look out for down the road to help your dog to live a long and healthy life, and Wisdom Health is the best test to help you do that.
However, if you’d like a more in-depth explanation of these tests, including how they work, then read our full write up to learn everything that you need to know. We give a full explanation of the benefits of these tests, their effectiveness, and why you might choose one over the other!
If you don’t have time for the full article though and you’ve already made up your mind, here’s a link to Wisdom Panel’s BEST and most comprehensive test!
Wisdom panel 3 vs 4 : What’s the difference?
Okay, so Wisdom Panel actually sells a couple of different dog DNA tests, and you may be wondering whether one is worth purchasing over the other one. That’s a valid concern, so here’s the low down on those tests.
Wisdom Panel 4 is actually the company’s newest test, and it has some increased functionality over the old test. When it comes to Wisdom Panel 3 vs 4, both will provide testing for MDR1 mutations to help you know if your dog could face a health threat if given certain prescription and over the counter medications.
This is obviously super important to know, because if your dog takes a medication that they are sensitive to, they could die. Be sure to make note of whether your dog has the MDR1 mutation when you get your results, and make sure to share this paperwork with your veterinarian so they are aware of it and know what they can and can’t prescribe to your dog!
However, the newer test, Wisdom Panel 4, also gives you important data on EIC, which stands for Exercise induced collapse. This is a condition that can pop up in mixed breed dogs, particularly those which have some genetic connection to the retriever breeds, which have many potential medical problems, including EIC and a predisposition to cancer.
Exercise Induced collapse ((https://www.vetmed.umn.edu/research/labs/canine-genetics-lab/genetic-testing/exercise-induced-collapse)) is a strange condition which can impact dogs which are seemingly otherwise healthy. Dogs who are suffering from this ailment will likely show signs of muscle weakness, loss of coordination and a severe increase in body temperature after exercising.
The condition can be life threatening if owners are unaware that their dogs have this syndrome. So, you’ll likely want to test for this as well just to be sure, but here are some symptoms to look out for anyway.
If your dog seems weak after just 5 to 20 minutes of mild to moderate exercise and you’re not sure why, then you may want to test them for EIC. Intense exercise is a no go for dogs suffering from this condition, and you’ll need to make an effort to manage their activity to preserve their health.
Some dogs have died after an episode of exercise-induced collapse, so if you see that your dog is looking fatigued, you should stop immediately. Look for uncoordinated movements or wobbliness as your hint that your pup should needs to take it easy.
Remember that not all dogs will stop when they are tired. Many of them want to please their owners so badly that they will continue to push themselves past the point of exhaustion! It’s up to you to make sure that your dog does not push him or herself past the limits of their body.
There isn’t really a treatment for this condition other than to avoid extreme exercise routines. You can pick up the Wisdom Panel 4 test on Amazon.
What’s the difference between Wisdom Panel 4 and Wisdom Panel Health DNA tests?
Wisdom Panel health is their best pet DNA testing product, and it gives you the most bang for your buck. While the Wisdom Panel 4 test kit will screen for over 350+ dog breeds, EIC and potential drug sensitiveness, the Health test does much, much more.
In addition to allowing you to know the above information, you’ll also be able to screen both mixed and pure breed dogs for over 150+ potential medical conditions. This is very important to any dog’s health but possibly even more so for mixed breed dog owners.
When you adopt a mixed breed dog it’s hard to know exactly what their breed information is. While you obviously still love them just the same regardless, knowing this information could help you to plan for big medical expenses down the line.
For example, if one of your dog’s parents was a German Shepherd, they could pass on something like hip Dysplasia. This ailment is not only extremely bad for your dog, but it can also be very expensive to treat, especially if your pup gets to the point of needing a hip replacement.
We also talked about golden retrievers earlier, which you may or may not know have an abnormally high risk of cancer, which can be exceedingly expensive to treat. Knowing about potential future issues can help you to plan for your pup’s future medical care.
By using the Wisdom Health version of the DNA test you can find out if your dog is predisposed to a number of conditions and diseases like cancer, hip dysplasia, heart issues, skeletal problems and more.
This could lead you to seek out a number of preventative treatments which could help to lessen the effects of these ailments on your dog and the impact it will have on your pocket book later if their health issues get out of hand.
You might also consider picking up a pet insurance policy if their breed indicates that they could be at risk for a costly disease later in life like cancer. It’s also possible that you might be able to save on your premiums if you know a little more about your dog’s genetics, as some dogs are actually cheaper to insure than others based on this information.
If you want to know more about your dog’s potential genetic conditions, then you can pick up the Wisdom Panel Health tests here.
How do you know which DNA test you should get?
When choosing your Wisdom Panel DNA test, it’s important to think about exactly what you want to get out of the experience. If you’re only interested in getting your dog’s breed information for your own curiosity, then the cheaper Wisdom Panel 4 test might suffice.
While the Wisdom Panel 3 test is a tad cheaper, it’s honestly worth it to go for Wisdom Panel 4 to get the EIC testing if you want to go that route.
If you’d prefer a more in depth result, which we’d recommend, then you should go with Wisdom Panel Health. This test is a good deal more expensive than the Wisdom Panel 4 test, but it’s worth it for the amount of information that you’ll get on your dog.
The Wisdom Panel Health test will give you the breed information, whether your dog could suffer from EIC, sensitivities to medications and a complete health profile so you can plan for their future health issues and know what you should be looking out for in case any symptoms arise.
After all, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. So, if you know that your dog is predisposed to a certain health condition, thanks to your DNA test, and you see signs of that ailment, you can inform your vet immediately. This will allow them to take action more quickly, potentially saving your beloved fur baby a lot of suffering and lessening the chance that that ailment will be permanently debilitating or fatal for them.
Wisdom Panel offers one of the most comprehensive doggy DNA tests in this regard, and it’s a great investment in your dog’s health. You can read some great reviews for these tests at their website to help you decide if you’re still not sure about it.
How do you use a Wisdom Panel Test?
Wisdom Panel tests are super easy to use! Don’t worry, you won’t have to prick your dog for a blood sample, everything is collected using the mouth swab technique. Your dog will barely notice you conducting the test, and it won’t hurt them at all.
Below you can see a short video from Wisdom Panel themselves about how the process works, but we’ve also outlined the steps with you with photos to help you out as well!
Step 1: Collect a cheek sample using the swab
All you need to do is get a swab sample from your dog’s cheek for the test. However, you should be aware that the quality of your sample will impact your results, so make sure to get a good one.
Do a quick check inside your dog’s mouth to look for any food debris, as they could negatively impact the sample. You might want to do the swab before they eat in the morning to avoid contamination.
Remove the swab from the package, but don’t touch the bristles! Firmly rotate and roll the swap around on your dog’s cheek to collect a good sample. You might even want to use your other hand to push the outside of their cheek in toward the swab to ensure good contact with the brush.
Your kit will also come with a sterile container which you’ll need to place the sample in. Don’t let it touch anything else, including your fingers or any surfaces. Put it straight into the baggy or container.
Step 2: Activate your kit
The next step is logging your sample so Wisdom Panel knows that it’s on its way! Go to the Wisdom panel site and select “activate kit” to get started.
In this step, you’ll be required to enter your sample ID, create an account, enter your information and your pet’s information so that Wisdom Panel can contact you with your results.
The sample ID number should be included in your kit somewhere in the documentation.
Step 3: Mail your sample to Wisdom Panel
Next, box up your sample using the included containers, and then send it on its way to Wisdom Panel. Make sure you don’t touch anything boxing it up so that the sample stays pure and your don’t potentially contaminate it!
Wisdom Panel should provide you with everything you need to send it back, including a prepaid shipping label that you can use to mail and track your package.
Step 4: Check your results Online
In 2-3 weeks, your results will be ready and you can log in to your account online to start learning about your pup’s unique genetic traits! You’ll be provided with a full report, and if you want to see what it looks like, then you should even be able to see a sample report on the website before you buy as well.
You’ll be able to see a full report of different information which includes breed info, possible health conditions, their ideal weight, physical traits, and more. It’s all pretty interesting, but don’t worry. If you only want the basic information, then it’s easy to navigate to each section and understand what’s presented to you.
Is Wisdom Panel Accurate?
Wisdom Panel is one of the most accurate canine DNA tests on the market. However, you should be aware that the quality of the sample that you collect plays a huge factor in how accurate the DNA test is, and you may not always get the result that you expect!
They use over 1,800 genetic markers in their computer analysis to draw connections to different breed profiles. (They also have over 20,000 others for identifying potential health issues.)
Some people claim that their results say that their dog is of a breed that looks nothing like them, and that may be true, but it doesn’t mean that your dog doesn’t share DNA with that breed! It’s totally possible that your dog has an ancestor that looks almost nothing like them, your genetics are funny that way.
The breed database is comprised of information of over 13,000 dogs, and because they compare your dog’s DNA to that of other dogs for a match that’s important for accuracy.
Your test results are validated for accuracy by repeatedly testing your dog’s DNA sample to make sure the conclusion is consistent and tests are also reviewed by independent third party specialists in canine genetics.
The company is also pretty cool in that if you don’t understand something in your DNA results you can actually call them to get clarification! They’ll go over the results and verify that what you’ve gotten is correct if you call their DNA hot line.
However, you should realize that DNA testing is complicated, and sometimes your results might not end up being what you expect. This doesn’t mean that the test is wrong per say, but when you have generation upon generation of mixed breed dog, sometimes things get messy.
Wisdom Panel goes above and beyond to make sure that your results are as accurate as possible. Click here to see what they have to offer.
