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“Booker”
Booker

Alaskan-type Husky

“Solomon x Hopper (Mackey/King/Sheer distance racing lines)”

This dog has been viewed and been given 48 wags

Genetic Breed Result

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What exactly are village dogs?

Village dogs are the free-breeding, free-roaming “outside” dogs found around the world living in and around human settlements big and small. They are also known as island dogs, pariah dogs, or free-ranging dogs.

Many village dog populations precede the formation of modern breed dogs.

They make up about 3/4s of the billion or so dogs living on Earth today. They serve as trash cleaners, sentinels, and even sometimes companions while still retaining much of their freedom. Embark’s founders have studied village dogs on six continents since 2007 in their efforts to understand the history, traits, and health of the domestic dog. Through this work they have discovered the origins of the dog in Central Asia, and also identified genetic regions involved in domestication and local adaptation, such as the high altitude adaptation in Himalayan dogs. Embark is the only dog DNA test that includes diverse village dogs from around the world in its breed reference panel.

So what breeds are in my dog?

In a very real sense, Alaskan-type Husky is the actual breed of your dog. Village dogs like this descend from separate lines of dogs than the lines that have been bred into standardized breeds like Labradors and Poodles. If you trace the family tree of Booker back, you won’t find any ancestral dogs that are part of any of those standardized breeds.

Alaskan-type Husky

The Alaskan Husky is all athlete. These dogs have a wide variety of appearances because they are bred for performance and behavior rather than looks. In fact, they've been specifically bred to pull sleds for hundreds of years. In temperament, they tend to be similar to the Siberian Husky.

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Changes to this dog’s profile
  • On 9/29/2021 changed name from "Booker of Wilderun" to "Booker"

Village dogs have lived just about everywhere across the world for thousands of years. Long before there were any recognized dog breeds, there were village dogs around the fires and trash heaps of early human villages. Booker is part of this ancient heritage, not descended from a specific breed, but continuing the ancient lineage of dogs that were our first, best friends.

Embark's co-founders studied Village Dogs on six continents in their efforts to understand the history, traits, and health of the domestic dog. Through this work, they discovered evidence for the origins of the dog in Central Asia , and they also identified genetic regions involved in domestication and local adaptation. As a result, Embark has the largest Village Dog reference panel of any canine genetics company.

We compared Booker's DNA to a global panel of thousands of village dogs. This plot highlights regions of the world where Booker's DNA is most similar to those village dogs. The areas of darkest red reflect the greatest similarity to our village dog panel.

Village Dog Map
Similarity to village dog groups around the world. Darker red reflects greater similarity.

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Here’s what Booker’s family tree may have looked like.
While there may be other possible configurations of his family’s relationships, this is the most likely family tree to explain Booker’s breed mix.
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Health Summary

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Good news!

Booker is not at increased risk for the genetic health conditions that Embark tests.

Breed-Relevant Genetic Conditions

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Primary Ciliary Dyskinesia, PCD (NME5, Alaskan Malamute Variant)

GM1 Gangliosidosis (GLB1 Exon 15, Alaskan Husky Variant)

Alaskan Husky Encephalopathy (SLC19A3)

Additional Genetic Conditions

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Traits

Explore the genetics behind your dog’s appearance and size.

Coat Color

Coat Color

Other Coat Traits

Other Coat Traits

Other Body Features

Other Body Features

Body Size

Body Size

Performance

Performance

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Through Booker’s mitochondrial DNA we can trace his mother’s ancestry back to where dogs and people first became friends. This map helps you visualize the routes that his ancestors took to your home. Their story is described below the map.

Haplogroup

E

Haplotype

E40

Map

E

Booker’s Haplogroup

Haplogroup E is a very rare maternal line, present primarily in Northern breed dogs and dogs with some level of recent gray wolf ancestry.

E40

Booker’s Haplotype

Part of the E haplogroup, this haplotype occurs most frequently in mixed breed dogs.

An example of an Akita.

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Through Booker’s Y-chromosome we can trace his father’s ancestry back to where dogs and people first became friends. This map helps you visualize the routes that his ancestors took to your home. Their story is described below the map.

Haplogroup

A1b

Haplotype

Ha.4/11

Map

A1b

Booker’s Haplogroup

For most of dog history, this haplogroup was probably quite rare. However, a couple hundred years ago it seems to have found its way into a prized male guard dog in Europe who had many offspring, including the ancestors of many European guard breeds such as Doberman Pinchers, St. Bernards, and Great Danes. Despite being rare, many of the most imposing dogs on Earth have it; strangely, so do many Pomeranians! Perhaps this explains why some Poms are so tough, acting like they're ten times their actual size! This lineage is most commonly found in working dogs, in particular guard dogs. With origins in Europe, it spread widely across other regions as Europeans took their dogs across the world.

Ha.4/11

Booker’s Haplotype

Part of the A1b haplogroup, this haplotype occurs most frequently in mixed breed dogs.

Great Danes and Pomeranians have this in common!

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