Around 450 dog breed types are recognised worldwide – 200 of which can be registered with the AKC, over 300 with the UKC, and Wisdom Panel can test for over 365!

Most modern breeds were selectively bred over time for appearance or performance. Landraces are populations of genetically similar dogs shaped by their environment. For more information, check out our blog post.

Registries, like AKC and UKC, often group breeds by function or history. Wisdom’s breed groups reflect genetic similarity and may not follow registry groupings.

The rarest reported dog breeds in the Wisdom database include the Azawakh, Harrier, Hokkaido Inu, New Guinea Singing Dog, and Peruvian Inca Orchid.

Over 90% of physical traits are found in more than one breed, making visual ID difficult. DNA testing can determine your dog’s genetic similarity to known breed types.