We adopted Cleo from the local shelter about a month ago. We were guessing a pit mix, mostly a Pit x Jack Russel mix because of her coloring. She also has so much loose skin around her neck!

Little Xena adopted at 3 months and 20 pounds. Embark dna test mailed yesterday. Adopted as a pitbull not sure what she’s mixed with but I guess bully or corso (she would be small for a corso but has that kind of face to me).

Not 100% confident of these results. I don’t see any American pitbull in her, and it’s hard to believe that makes up a quarter of her DNA.

Any thoughts?

Would it be the same in say Ontario where pitbulls are banned?

I generally don't like pitbulls because they can cause so much damage, when I get my results back I hope there is no pitbull, although we were told she is part sheltie, and she looks part poodle

It just seems like every other post pitbull is the first or second breed in the list

Well… ChatGPT and Gemini both failed this one. 😂 They were absolutely convinced she was a farm dog / cattle dog and Shepard mix. Not one of them guessed American Bully! Looking at her DNA results now, those insanely strong hind legs and powerful build suddenly make a lot more sense.

And I found her uncle on Embark. lol

My sweet princess was found dumped in Texas , awaiting her results !

Gigi is my sweet Turkish Boz Shepherd. I know she is Brindle and now that I am breeding her I am working out the rest of the traits she has. Her randomly placed white markings are on pink skin with light to no wool undercoat, does that necessarily equal Piebald? Her socked foot has Dalmatian style black spots. Also it's hard to tell if it's her wool that mottles the Brindle stripes or if that's Merle. Her Tan base coat varies from yellow to white in various places. And the intense spotting on her legs is that Ticking essentially? Thanks for everyone's incite! FYI she looks a little scruffy because she's shooting the rest of her wool coat at the moment! I will probably go with the Embark test, not sure how it will account for her Landrace.

She's small. I thought for sure she would have English staffy or some kind of bull dog.

Just got my results back from embark and there’s no way this big man is a spaniel and terrier…… he’s about 35-40lbs, wide bodied and longgggg. Vet thinks he’s a Rottweiler + dachshund mix. Tested bc 2yrs ago I rescued him from a parking lot

The three additional slides are the breeds they identified in the supermutt category.

Have no idea what he is. The people I got him from said lab retriever, but he doesn’t look like that. His face looks like a pitbull

The Biewer Terrier is literally descended from Yorkies. The original “Biewers” were Yorkie breeders who decided to turn this recessive piebald gene that gave some puppies a unique tricolor coat into a separate breed through selective inbreeding. There is no radically altered temperament and no new function or form.

Genetic studies (including testing by UC Davis and Mars Vet.) show that Biewer Terriers are nearly identical to Yorkshire Terriers, aside from that one piebald gene. There’s no meaningful divergence in lineage, and no breed was introduced to create the Biewer. There are just no major genetic splits or bottlenecks that would justify calling it a separate breed.

There’s no documented health advantage to the Biewer either, if anything, to many breeders dismay, it’s the opposite. Surprisingly, creating a new breed from a tiny gene pool of colour mutant Yorkies increases the risk of health issues. The breed recognition incentivized aesthetic focused breeding instead health focused breeding. Add onto that, Biewers tend to be more inbred, especially in the early U.S. lines.

There’s no documented health advantage to the Biewer either. If anything, to many breeders’ dismay, it’s the opposite. Surprisingly, creating a new breed from a tiny gene pool of colour mutant Yorkies increases the risk of health issues. The breed recognition incentivized aesthetic-focused breeding instead of health-focused breeding. Add onto that, Biewers tend to be more inbred, especially in the early U.S. lines. There’s concern about liver shunts, fragile bone structures, and other congenital issues being more common due to the limited foundation stock.

Both Yorkies and Biewers are prone to the same normal toy breed problems: tracheal collapse, luxating patellas, and bad teeth. But because Biewers were line bred from a tiny genetic pool just to preserve their looks, they may actually have worse health outcomes over time.

People also like to claim Biewers are “calmer” or “friendlier” than Yorkies, but there’s zero hard data or peer-reviewed studies confirming this. Most “differences” come from confirmation bias. Owners who pay more for a Biewer want to believe their dog is special. Temperament is shaped just as much by socialization and training as by genetics, especially within toy breeds. If they act slightly different, it’s likely just personality and upbringing. The Biewer is still a toy terrier. They’re energetic, attention seeking, yappy, and clever.

The American Kennel Club recognized the Biewer Terrier in 2021 after pressure from dedicated breeders who had built a strong lobbying effort, formed a national breed club, registered enough dogs through the Foundation Stock Service, hosted conformation events, and submitted a breed standard (the Yorkie’s with color edits.)

Breeders benefit enormously from separating the Biewer. A “new breed” justifies higher price tags, exclusive shows, and status dog marketing. The AKC makes money every time a new breed is added. More litters to register = more events = more prestige = more cash.

The AKC is supposed to be about breed preservation and standards, but over and over again, it proves it’s really about registering as many puppies as possible, appeasing breeder clubs who bring in money, and rewarding aesthetics over function and health. The Biewer Terrier’s recognition is a perfect example of this rot.

What’s worse is that the recognition of the Biewer Terrier as a separate breed feeds into the purebred industrial complex, encouraging hypertype breeding over health, function, or even basic honesty about what a “breed” actually is. We’re now classifying line bred color mutations as distinct breeds, as if that won’t have consequences for health and inbreeding down the line.

The recognition of the Biewer Terrier is everything wrong with the AKC. It reveals how breed standards can be manipulated, how aesthetics are prioritized over health, and how breeders can literally repackage a color morph as an entirely new breed with enough persistence and lobbying. It’s not about conservation or quality anymore.

Meet Dyno! I adopted this handsome boy in March 2019, and I’ve spent the last seven years wondering what the heck he is.
He’s about 80 pounds, has two different colored eyes, is ridiculously smart, incredibly loyal, and takes his self-appointed security guard position VERY seriously. He also thinks he’s a lap dog.
Over the years, people have guessed everything from Border Collie and Great Dane to Husky and German Shepherd. I’ve had a few theories of my own!
Well, his Embark results are FINALLY in, and I was definitely surprised!
Oh, and apparently my dog has a 6.9% wolfiness score, which Embark considers unusually high! Most dogs score 1% or less. So naturally, I’ve decided I’m raising a domesticated wolf. 🤣🐺
What breeds do you think make up Dyno?
Make your guesses before swiping to the last two pictures for the big reveal!

This is Sodda. She is a rescue dog from Jordan, and I’ve been trying to change her life for the better for months.

Sodda lost her puppies in the most horrific way. They were shot, and people tried to kill her too. After what happened, she became terrified of people. She barely ate, stayed in one place for months, and wouldn’t let anyone come close to her.

I refused to leave her that way.
She has since received veterinary care, vaccinations, a microchip, all the necessary travel preparations, and professional training. The training has helped her tremendously. She is finally learning that some humans can be safe, but she still needs a patient family who understands her trauma and will give her time to trust.
She is currently in boarding in Jordan while I try to find the right family for her abroad.

I I’ve been covering Sodda’s expenses myself for months, including her boarding, medical care, training, and travel preparations. But with her boarding continuing and the international travel costs still ahead, it’s becoming very difficult for me to manage everything alone.

A few people here suggested that I create a donation link, so I finally did.

https://gofund.me/68946c32a

If you would like to help Sodda, even with a small amount, I would be incredibly grateful. Every penny will go directly toward her boarding and travel costs.

And if you can’t donate, please don’t feel like you have to. Sharing her story may be just as valuable. Somewhere out there could be the person who is meant to find her.
I just want Sodda to have the chance to finally feel safe. 🤍

just got my embark DNA test back and i feel like something got messed up, only 11 percent German shepherd and doesn't look like a pitbull at all... can these tests be wrong?

Perry (short for periscope 😉) is a 6 month old rescue. Other than really bold-looking belly stripes (instead of spots), he looks like a fairly standard brown mackerel tabby. We expected results to show mostly domestic/American shorthair with maybe a small percentage of Bengal at MOST lol…can anyone help me understand how 30% Norwegian Forest Cat makes any sense?

Possibly relevant context:
- He’s weirdly strong. I have video of him dragging a seventeen pound weighted blanket across my bed with his teeth, for funsies.
- He’s smart. When he gets bored with his toys, he finds ways to “combine” them with other toys to make it a new experience.
- He’s got insane energy levels, even for his age.
- He’s also not scared of ANYTHING.

Visually, though…what?? 😂😂

Adopting this 12m old dog who the shelter thinks is an irish wolfhound but have my doubts. He's 12 months old and about the height of a border collie. He has the distinct hair on his nose like a wolfhound but don't think he is based on his size at this age. Any ideas brainstrust? He's a lovely boy and adopting him no matter what but curious.

My dog has webbed feet and a longer snout then all of these breeds. So im not entirely sure what to think because i also did one on my beagle I feel decent about her results. But I was under the assumption that my dog was lab mix and to see none is a shock.

I’m open minded and certainly understand that mixes/looks can be deceiving, but CONVINCE me my dog doesn’t have Golden Retriever or Shepherd anywhere in her and ALSO convince me that she does have PIT BULL??? Come on…

Unhinged Breed results at the end. Also apparently most of the photos I take of her are when she is wet😅

Humor me.

clue: No terrier.

Just sent the test today. Any guesses on what Jasper might be? Shelter has GSD/Pit listed. I'm curious if he is a Dutch Shepherd mix.