FAQ & Resources

Yes!  Our feline and canine tests are available to veterinarians through our veterinary distribution partner, MWI Animal Health. 

You can also click here to order at MWI.

Basepaws Veterinary offers complementary genetic counseling and support to veterinarians.

Included on each genetic report is an description of  any diseases associated with identified mutations, diagnostic and treatment considerations.

You can request a consult by contacting us.  

Each veterinary kit contains 3 test swabs. A simple cheek swab of your patient in the exam room is all it takes.  Instructions are printed on the outside of the carton. There are no invasive blood draws required.  

Before sending the sample to us, you MUST register the sample in the Basepaws Vet Portal. Without a digital requisition form, we will not know who the sample came from.

Inside the kit is everything you need to send the sample to our lab for sequencing. Place the sample tube in the enclosed biohazard bag for secure mailing and then inside the postage-paid envelope.  Drop it into your regular US Mail.  That's it!

You can check the status of the sample at any time by logging into your Basepaws Vet Portal. We updated the status when the sample has been received, when its processing, and when results are ready.

You can request a sample report here:

Each report includes a breed similarity overview and detailed DNA health marker report.  Depending on which species (canine or feline) is tested, the number of health markers will vary. For more information about the number of markers and a complete list of all markers in each test, visit the product pages outlining feline or canine genetic markers, or contact us.

Risk categories for identified genetic mutations are categorized as at-high risk, at-risk, carrier or all markers clear.  We also include disease descriptions, treatment and diagnostic considerations.

Oral microbiome tests include a risk-assessment for dental conditions: periodontal disease and tooth resorption.  An added category, feline gingivostomatitis, currently in clinical trials will be added soon!

Once you have registered your patient's sample online and mailed it to the lab, processing the sample begins when we receive it.

Canine sequencing currently takes about 8 weeks.

Feline Baseline and Feline Oral Microbiome sequencing takes about 4-6 weeks.

Times are estimated and can fluctuate.

When you create an account with Basepaws Veterinary you will receive access to the Basepaws Vet Portal. This easy to navigate portal is where you will register your patients' samples before mailing and see sample status and view reports.

Because a genetic report has the potential to be alarming for very curious pet owners depending on if genetic mutations were discovered, we release the results to the veterinarian only. Basepaws treats this test much like you would any diagnostic panel such as a blood test or another advanced diagnostic test.

We put the veterinarian in control of the information and are here to support you in case you need interpretation guidance, which is free.

You can download or print a copy of the report to provide to your client.

The Basepaws Veterinary lab is located in Torrance, California, U.S. 

An important part of the scientific process is to establish whether innovative research findings are consistent with previous studies. At Basepaws, we participate in this process to see if and how the patterns emerging from our data relate to already published research. This allows us to place our research within the context of the current state of knowledge in feline genetics, as well as identify knowledge gaps that will generate new questions and drive future research.

Health Markers: Next Generation Amplicon Sequencing (NGS) is the method Basepaws uses to obtain high-depth information beyond the capacity of traditional DNA sequencing technologies. It requires no prior data, and affords us the ability to efficiently update our health marker panel to include newly discovered markers with much greater speed and agility than companies that use DNA microarrays.

Oral Microbiome Analysis: Most microbiome tests use 16S rRNA gene sequencing. This technique can only be used for identifying bacterial species (and some archaea). Yet the oral microbiome is also host to viruses, fungi, and other microorganisms. To get the whole picture, Basepaws uses shotgun metagenomic sequencing, a method that allows us to capture complete genomes of most microorganisms, not restricting us to only bacteria. We’ve since built the largest oral microbiome reference database (tens of thousands of microbiomes and counting!), which allows us to recognize a multitude of novel associations between diseases and microbes in the mouth, as well as confirm previously reported findings.

Breed Analysis: Unlike most DNA tests for humans and companion animals, our breed relativity test relies on low-pass whole genome sequencing (WGS) and computational imputation, as opposed to DNA microarray technology. Using this method allows us to gain a bird's eye view of the complete genome, instead of focusing on only a handful of variants.

Learn More by reading this blog

Basepaws addresses key unmet needs in pet health by tapping into the experience, knowledge, and passion of pet parents, veterinarians, scientists, and pet health professionals. The quality of our research is strengthened by the diversity of data that we collect across our clinical and citizen science research programs.

We are currently collaborating with research products in key clinical areas:

• Atopic & Food Allergic Dermatitis
• Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD)
• Diabetes Mellitus
• Feline Stomatitis & Tooth Resorption
• GI Lymphoma
• Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD)
• Periodontal Disease
• Longevity

Other areas of interest and research include:

• Cancer
• Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy (HCM)
• FIP
• Obesity
• Osteoarthritis
• Idiopathic Cystitis
• Oxalate & Struvite Urolithiasis

To learn more or to sign up to contribute to research projects, visit our research page or contact us.

There are several benefits to adding genetic testing to your veterinary practice:

• Add value to wellness programs
• Improve efficiency of patient visits
• Increase adherence to recommendations
• Grow revenue opportunities with further diagnostics, pharmacy, & other categories.
• Meet client demands for personalized care

Basepaws genetic screening tests can help your practice realize revenue through:

• Actionable items that expand targeted diagnostics including laboratory, ultrasound, dental prophys and more.
• Increased patient visits for medical progress checks, medication & diet management, and virtual care.
• Increased client compliance and adherence to recommendations which can bolster pharmacy and retail revenues
• Support additional patient consults with veterinary specialists if necessary.

Each Basepaws Baseline genetic report could include information in three risk categories or an All Markers Clear status. Learn more below:

AT HIGH RISK - A very strong chance that the animal will develop the disease. It can mean one of four things:

1. The animal has one or two copies of a marker associated with an autosomal dominant disease
2. The animal. has two copies of a marker associated with an autosomal/recessive disease
3. The animal has two copies of a marker associated with a disease resulting in a more severe disease presentation than if there were only one marker
4. A male animal has one copy of an X-linked disease.
   

AT RISK - The animal has one copy of a marker for a disease where there is a dosage component to disease presentation. When more than one copy of the disease associated marker is present, there is a likelihood of more severe disease presentation.

CARRIER - As a carrier, the animal is not at risk for developing the disease, but its offspring may be at risk. In most cases the animal has one copy of a autosomal recessive disease-associated marker (mutated allele) For diseases with a recessive inheritance pattern, the animal will develop disease only if it has two copies of the marker, or a female has one copy of an X-linked gene.

ALL MARKERS CLEAR - The animal has tested negative (zero copies) for all the markers that Basepaws tests for and that are known to be associated with a particular disease.  This does not rule out the need for diagnosis of a disease should symptoms develop. Also, it may be possible that the animal is positive for markers that have not yet been discovered or that may be affected by environment or epigenetic factors.