Why we publish all of it
Every one of our poodles is screened for 273 genetic conditions. We publish the complete results here — flagged items included — and we link each dog’s full test profile so you can read it yourself rather than take our word for it.
Before you read any panel, here is the context that makes it make sense: almost no dog comes back completely blank. By Embark’s own figures, roughly 75% of all dogs are a carrier or at risk for at least one genetic condition — and that is true whether or not anyone ever tested for them. A flagged result is not a sick dog. Usually it means the dog carries a single copy of something that could only cause disease if paired with a second copy — which is exactly what testing lets us prevent.
We would rather show you everything and explain it than publish a shorter list and hope nobody asks.
One result you will see on every dog: ALT Activity
Every poodle in our program carries a variant affecting ALT activity, so we will explain it once here rather than repeating it on each dog.
ALT is not a disease. It is a liver enzyme your veterinarian measures on routine bloodwork. Dogs with this variant simply run a naturally lower baseline. Our dogs are healthy; this is just their normal.
The reason it is worth knowing: if a dog with a low baseline ever did develop a liver problem, its ALT could climb meaningfully while still landing inside the standard “normal” range on the printout. Mentioning it to your vet once means they will read every future blood panel against your dog’s actual baseline rather than a population average. That is better information than most dog owners have about their dogs.
The fact that it appears across our whole program is not a red flag — it is a common variant that runs in the breed, and one of the most frequently reported results on Embark panels generally.
How pairing works, in plain terms
Genetics for these conditions works in pairs. A puppy gets one copy from each parent. For a recessive condition, a dog needs two bad copies to ever develop the disease. One copy makes a dog a carrier — healthy for life, but able to pass the variant along.
So a carrier is not a problem. A carrier bred to another carrier is a problem. We pair specifically so that never happens. That is the entire point of testing: it does not eliminate carriers, it eliminates affected puppies.
Every pairing we make is checked against both parents’ complete panels before we breed. When a clear parent is bred to a carrier, no puppy in that litter can be affected — not unlikely, impossible.
This is also, for what it is worth, exactly what Embark recommends. Breeding a carrier to a clear dog is considered good practice rather than a compromise, because removing every carrier from a breeding program would shrink the gene pool — and a narrow gene pool is its own long-term health problem for the breed. The goal is not a kennel of blank panels. The goal is no affected puppies, with the breed’s genetic diversity kept intact.
What this means for your puppy
Your puppy’s protection comes from the pairing. Both parents are fully panel-tested, both panels are published in full below, and the pairing was chosen so that your puppy cannot be affected by anything either parent carries.
That is worth saying precisely, because it is stronger than it sounds. For these recessive conditions, breeding a clear dog to a carrier does not make an affected puppy unlikely — it makes one genetically impossible. The testing is what lets us know which pairings those are.
If you would like your own puppy’s individual panel — or simply want the coat genetics, traits and relatives that come with it — an Embark kit ordered once your puppy is home will give you one. Plenty of our families do, and we are always glad to sit down and go through the results with you.
Our dogs
Each dog’s full Embark profile is linked with their name. Nothing below is summarized — it is what the panel says.
Samson
Clear for 272 of the 273 conditions screened — including Progressive Retinal Atrophy (prcd). ALT activity is his only flagged result, and it is explained in full above.
Read Samson’s full Embark panel ↗
Korie
Clear for 272 of the 273 conditions screened — including Progressive Retinal Atrophy (prcd). ALT activity is her only flagged result.
Read Korie’s full Embark panel ↗
Tori
Clear for 272 of the 273 conditions screened — including Progressive Retinal Atrophy (prcd). ALT activity is her only flagged result.
Read Tori’s full Embark panel ↗
Dusty
Clear for 270 of the 273 conditions screened. Three results are flagged, and here is every one of them.
Progressive Retinal Atrophy (prcd) — carrier. Dusty inherited one copy of this variant, and Embark states plainly on her report that she is not at risk for the condition. A dog needs two copies to be affected, so she will not lose vision from it. This is a well-known condition in poodles, and it is the reason we test before every pairing. Dusty is only ever bred to dogs that have tested clear, which makes affected puppies genetically impossible. Some of her puppies will be carriers like her, with normal vision for life; the rest will carry nothing.
Copper Toxicosis (Accumulating) — significance unknown. One copy, and a genuine “not known yet.” Embark’s own wording is that she is not known to be at increased risk: the research on this variant was done in other breeds, and not enough poodles have been studied to say whether it affects a dog like Dusty at all. See the fuller note under Willie below.
ALT activity — see the section above.
Read Dusty’s full Embark panel ↗
Willie
Clear for 270 of the 273 conditions screened. Three results are flagged: ALT activity, and two variants related to copper. The two copper results are worth reading together, because one of them is protective.
Copper Toxicosis (Accumulating) — significance unknown. One copy. Embark’s wording is that Willie is not known to be at increased risk. The variant has been studied in other breeds — Labrador Retrievers in particular — but not in enough poodles for anyone to say whether it affects a dog like Willie at all. It is reported so researchers can keep gathering data. It is a research flag, not a diagnosis and not a prediction: Willie does not have liver disease.
Copper Toxicosis (Attenuating) — protective. This one is good news, and we would rather explain it than let it sit on the page looking like a third problem. In Embark’s words, this variant “may help lessen the effects of copper buildup” in dogs that also carry the accumulating variant, and on its own it is not associated with an increased risk of any disease. Because it sits on the X chromosome, a male dog carrying one copy — Willie — is better protected against copper accumulation than a female with one copy would be. So the two copper results do not stack up against him. The second one works against the first.
Copper accumulation is also strongly influenced by diet, not genetics alone — Embark says both genetic and environmental factors play a role. We track this result in our program.
ALT activity — see the section above.
Read Willie’s full Embark panel ↗
Common questions
Should a carrier result worry me?
No. A carrier is a healthy dog for life. It only affects breeding decisions, and only if you intend to breed.
Does any of this need treatment or medication?
No. Nothing on any of our panels requires treatment, medication, or special management.
Will this shorten my dog’s life?
No. None of these results affect health or lifespan.
Can I have my puppy’s own panel run?
Absolutely, and some of our families do. An Embark kit ordered once your puppy is home will give you their individual results, along with coat genetics, traits and relatives. Bring us whatever it says and we will go through it with you.
Why do other breeders’ pages look cleaner?
Usually because they publish a summary rather than the panel. Remember that roughly 75% of all dogs carry something, so a program with genuinely blank panels across the board would be unusual — and not necessarily a good sign, since breeding only clear dogs narrows the gene pool. Carrier results are normal in a well-run program. What matters is whether the breeder knows about them and pairs around them, which is exactly what this page is showing you.
What can’t testing tell me?
Genetic screening covers inherited conditions with known variants. It does not predict injuries, infections, or conditions where the genetics are not yet understood. It is one useful tool among several, alongside health exams and knowing the dogs.
Ask us
If anything here raises a question, ask. We would far rather walk you through a result than have you draw a conclusion from a page on the internet. Every dog’s full Embark profile is linked with their name above — open them, read them, and bring us whatever you find.