The Story of Senior Dogs, Lillie and Morey
This is the story of two senior dogs and how Embark DNA Kits changed the entire story of their lives! The year 2019 was a big year for dog lover, Alysia. She just scored a brand new job and closed on a house! Life was pretty amazing, but missing something. What is a new home with a fenced in yard without a couple of dogs? Alysia had been a volunteer with a rescue in Western New York for some time and she had always loved interacting with the rescue’s senior dogs. So a decision was made! Her home needed some senior dogs!
Senior Dog Freedom Ride
That is where Lille and Morey come into this crazy story. On March 9, 2019 Alysia and her sister, Marisa, drove to Cuba NY to pick up two seniors that needed a home. Lillie and Morey were found by the local animal control, abandoned in a house full of cats. It was a hoarding case that resulted in an eviction, but the animals were just left behind. Animal Control then brought them to a local rescue where they went into a foster home to wait for their forever home.
Lillie and Morey were up for adoption with the hope they would go together, but the rescue did say they would be willing to separate them if it would help them get adopted. From the second Alysia met them, there was no thinking it over. They both were coming with her. The two girls spent two hours in the car brainstorming new names for the dynamic duo but nothing fit better than the names they were already given. So they officially became Lillie and Morey.
At ten years old, Lillie and Morey quickly adjusted right into their new lives. They got two new fursiblings, cats Niko and Toby. A beautiful yard to relax in the sun. And a comfy couch to lay on the back of! Alysia loved the pace of her new babies, slow and steady and naps everyday! This dedicated mama even moved her bedroom to the first floor for Lillie and Morey, so they could go to bed without wearing out their senior joints. The two eventually got a new nickname, LilMo. This way their mom could address them both in a quick way!
Embark DNA Testing
As the days progressed for this little family, Alysia started becoming curious on what breeds her furkids were. She was told at the adoption meet and greet that the best guess for Morey was a Shepard mix and Lillie was a Lab mix. Alysia could see the Shepard qualities in Morey but was not totally convinced on Lillie’s breed prediction.
The First DNA Results
After doing some research, Alysia decided that she was going to get Lillie a EmbarkVet DNA + Health Kit. Once she got it in the mail, she swabbed Lillie’s check collecting all her DNA, and sent it off to be analyzed! After waiting several weeks, Alysia finally got an email the results were in!
Lillie’s DNA came back 17.5% Boxer, 15% Mountain Cur, 14.3% Beagle, 11% Border Collie, 6.8% Australian Shepard, 6% Chow Chow, and 5.9% German Shepard Dog. What a crazy combination for the 28 pound couch potato!
As time went on, Alysia kept telling herself that Morey did not need a DNA kit. One was enough and he was clearly a Shepard mix. Morey’s Aunt Marisa was so curious though and was not going to let Mo go his life without knowing his genetic make up. So she bought him an Embark DNA Kit for Christmas.
Like Lillie five month earlier, Morey got his cheek swabbed and the DNA was sent in the mail to be tested! Fast forward a couple weeks and the results were ready!
But what Alysia saw was so strange…
Morey’s DNA was 17.8% Beagle, 17.8% Boxer, 13.1% Mountain Cur, 12.3% Border Collie, 9.5% Australian Shepard, 8.4% Chow Chow, and 6.8% German Shepard Dog. The exact same breeds as Lillie. How could that happen?
The Shocking Truth
Alysia looked at her two dogs that looked nothing alike… What are the chances that they have the same breed make up? Alysia looked back at the results in her email and saw the button “Relatives”. She clicked it… and gasped.
The proof was in the DNA. Lillie and Morey were biological siblings.
These two ten year old boxer mixes have been together since birth! Living in a hoarding situation, taken in by animal control, put into a foster home, posted up for adoption separately, and given a forever home by a woman who has a beautiful heart for senior dogs.
Save A Senior Dog and Purchase an Embark DNA Kit
If there is anything you get from this story, I want you to take away two things. First, adopt a senior pet. In shelters all over the United States, there are senior dogs sitting that were surrendered for being old, being sick, or being lazy. Those babies do not deserve to decline in a shelter with no one to love them. Adopt a senior pet. You can even volunteer with a local rescue to become a fospice (foster for a hospice dog); providing a senior dog a place to live during their golden years.
Second, Embark DNA Kits are hands down the best on the market! They are the only canine genetics company that uses a research-grade DNA genotyping platform. This type of science makes Embark the only company to have the ability to identify relatives in canine DNA, connecting dog owners from across the country who have related dogs! Or even connecting canines who share the same couch. Like Lillie and Morey!
