How to Find Out What Kind of Dog You Have
While many people and pet owners like to know “what kind of dog is that?” just to satisfy their own curiosity, dog breed designations have also been used in an attempt to predict future behavior, match pets to families, find lost dogs, and even to enact regulations that restrict the ownership of certain types of dogs.
Dogs come in all shapes and sizes, and frequently without pedigrees to describe their exact breed or heritage. The identities of dogs with unknown or mixed-breed lineages are frequently guessed based on their physical appearance or behavior, but it is not known how accurate these canine visual breed assessments are.
Faculty and students from the Shelter Medicine Program at the University of Florida College of Veterinary Medicine conducted a national survey of dog experts to compare their best guesses for the breeds of dogs in a series of photographs. These visual assessments were compared to DNA breed profiles for the dogs.
Dog Breed Identification: Photo Survey and Results
More than 5,000 dog experts, including breeders, trainers, groomers, veterinarians, shelter staff, rescuers, and others completed this breed identification survey. You are invited to view images of the 100 dogs in our study, their actual DNA breed results, and what our survey participants guessed their breeds were. Maybe you’ll see a photo that looks like your own special pup!
- Dog breed identification chart
- Read the breed study abstract
- Sign up for eNews and receive updates from our program!
This study was conducted by Dr. Julie Levy with the assistance of Merial Veterinary Scholar Kathleen Croy and is made possible by a grant from the National Canine Research Council.
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