Mars has said it can not tell if any other breed in the Biewer Terrier. They have found a genetic difference in the Biewers tested but can not tell if it is just a color gene (i.e. piebald gene) making the difference. I could easily run out and get my Biewer's tested but at this point until they tell me they can 100% tell me what is the point of waisting money.
Dear Ms. Miller,
Mars Veterinary has detected using both the Wisdom Panel MX test, and other scientific analysis that all the Biewer Terriers submitted to us for testing had a similar, but distinct, genetic signature to the Purebred Yorkshire Terriers we have tested.
It is not possible for us to definitively state with current knowledge and technology what (if any) other breeds than Yorkshire Terrier were present in the foundation of the Biewer terriers pedigrees and what gene (or genes) are causing the distinctive coloration seen in the Biewer terriers. All we can say is that Biewer Terriers share closest genetic similarity to Yorkshire Terriers than they do to any other breed that the Wisdom Panel can detect. The question of which dogs founded the Biewer Terrier pedigree is more a question for the Biewer Terrier founder breeders. All we can state is that all Biewer Terriers tested with Wisdom Panel MX contain a significant amount of signature match to the Yorkshire Terrier, often with minor matches to other breeds including in some dogs - Japanese Chin and Maltese breed signatures amongst others.
It is clearly a matter for the various global Kennel Clubs and Breed clubs to determine what is and isn't a breed in their eyes, and also to draw up the breed standards and qualifying measures to determine which individual dogs are considered to be members of breeds.
I hope that I have gone some way to answering your questions. If you have any more, or would like further information, then please feel free to reply directly to me or to get in touch with our customer care team at
customercare@marsveterinary.com or 888-K9 PET TEST (1-888-597-3883).
Regards,
Neale Fretwell
Mars Veterinary
Here is part of another email that was sent before this one.
What this means for your dogs is that, if taken now, the results of the Wisdom Panel MX test will predominantly be reported as Yorkshire Terrier with elements of other minor or trace breeds. At the present time, we do not recommend the test as an arbiter of the purity of any given pedigree.