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Originally Posted by normarae63  Really interesting subject brought about by the ousting of yet another bad breeder. I still cannot get over that she bragged about breeding merle to merle since even though I don't know much about genetics I do know how to use google. 
Although the article is over my head at times I found this & many others just by doing a google search of some of the terms used in recent comments above. Analysis of Genetic Variation in 28 Dog Breed Populations With 100 Microsatellite Markers |
Hi, this is a relative early (2002) study based on only 100 genetic markers and only 28 breeds (including Yorkshire Terriers), so I would call these results preliminary. The data described by
tricia208 are probably more recent and complete. Based on these 100 markers, the Bull Terrier had the least genetic variation, although Boxers and Miniature Bull Terriers were not far behind. The breeds with the most genetic variation were Jack Russell Terrier, followed by Pomeranian, Papillon, and Australian Shepherd. Yorkies were not far behind. They only examined between 40 and 50 dogs of each breed. I'm sure the more recent study is much more extensive, so we'll see. There are more gems buried in that study, but I'll wait until I've had a chance to see the more recent data before covering some of the finer points. Thanks for whetting our appetites!