Though you have to take the ancestry portion of an at-home pet DNA test kit with a grain of salt, these tests can be helpful for practical things like figuring out blood type, oral health, and the likelihood of the pet being predisposed to potentially harmful genetic mutations, diseases, or abnormalities.
They’re less invasive, expensive, or stressful than a trip to a vet, and now they’re even cheaper with Black Friday discounts. You can gain valuable insights into your pet’s health for 47 to 50 percent off from now until December 1.
Check out the Absolute Best Black Friday Deals roundup and our Black Friday liveblog to find more bargains this sale weekend.
Basepaws has one breed and health test for cats, which identifies up to 21 breeds, 64 genetic health markers, 50 genetic trait markers, blood type, and oral health; and one for dogs, which identifies more than 330 breeds, more than 280 genetic health markers, and more than 30 genetic trait markers.
All you have to do is register your kit, set up an account and your pet’s profile, swab your pet’s mouth, send it back in the self-addressed packet, and in about five weeks, results will show up in your email and online account. Then, perhaps best of all, you can send them to your vet so they can access your pet’s data to ensure they have the most up-to-date health information for the next vet visit or (dog forbid!) emergency trip.
I compared Basepaws against Wisdom Panel, the other most popular at-home test kit for pets, and while I liked Wisdom Panel’s interface a bit more, Basepaws had a lot more health information. This is especially the case for cats: Basepaws was able to tell me my cats’ blood type and transfusion risk—super helpful information for my vet to have, especially in an emergency or surgery situation. I found the oral health report to be extremely helpful, too—both of my cats have halitosis and are at risk for dental disease. Because I had these results, I had my vet look into my cats’ dental health, and she agreed that they had mild plaque. We promptly began a routine for regular teeth brushing.
These kits are regularly outside of my typical price range, but are 47 to 50 percent off until December 1, making them a great gift for the pet parent in your life, or for your own fur baby. Not only is it fun and educational to get insights and compare breeds, but the indicators of genetic predispositions, blood type, and transfusion risk, and oral health for cats could be potentially life-saving.
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