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Guess Tessa's Mix-Awaiting DNA test results

Penelope's Mom

Well-Known Member
I completely agree with lymala. An unhappy customer tells 10-15 people. A happy customer doesn't tell nearly that many people. They should be bending over backwards to give you whatever it takes to make you happy. With today's social media, they have no idea how many potential customers they could lose because of this.
 

Catia

Well-Known Member
Let me tell you, Wisdom / Mars Veterinary could care less about customer service.
I *did* ask to speak to someone higher up-IN MANAGEMENT-What I got was Anthony...

Anthony needs to put down his Honey Bear Bong & get out of bed.

Both times I truly felt like I was dealing with people who not only did not care, but it is OBVIOUS there is zero quality control & no one is concerned about any reprocussions from management--especially Anthony, who cannot even be bothered to ask who he is speaking with--that's how little this company cares about the consumer.

Mars has already sued & owns bio per vet lab & others online that appear unrelated to Mars are just reselling their product.
I can't seem to find a DNA testing comapany that isn't related to Mars--so they don't care, they've got all the business under their wing.

Yes, I do think I should do as suggested above so that this this issue comes up when people do a search.

I do however want to follow this through to the admin level & I am determined to persue it.
If I keep getting the run around with people, I'm gonna contact the attorney generals office & see where to go from there.
I might even contact the news-& some consumer watch groups-makes a good story this time of year for all of the new puppy owners.

I'm really getting jacked--I just want what any other consumer wants--WHAT I PAID FOR--These are kids I am dealing with, not professionals, & I'm pretty sure the 1st rep was reading from a flip chart, she seemed to not understand the difference between a maltese & a newfie, when I mentioned mastiff, she went to rat terrier...
 

LizB

Well-Known Member
This definitely sounds like they're just trying to take advantage of pet owners and make money off of our interest in knowing more about our pets. There are so very many rescued dogs out there that the market is huge for the curious pet owner trying to better understand what makes their dog tick. The science is totally there and they ought to be taking it seriously. They can make their money AND take it seriously at the same time! Look at LabCorp!

I had no idea they owned Bio Vet Lab!
 

Catia

Well-Known Member
Good but long article from Americanscientist.org--gets into the thick of it.
Things have come farther than just what this article states, it's from 2007.
 

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Catia

Well-Known Member
Ok, so some progress ...here is a cut/paste of the email I received today from Mars:

"Thank you for contacting Mars Veterinary, the creators of Wisdom Panel® tests, best-in-class breed identification test for mixed-breed dogs. Our science team would like to do a further re-analysis on Tessa's sample. I have escalated your concerns to our science team for review and once the review is complete, they will contact you with their findings (via phone and email).

The escalation process takes approximately 21 business days, and is free of charge. The re-analysis process involves our Geneticist manually looking at Tessa's raw data sample, and then selecting the breeds herself. As opposed to our algorithm selecting the best matches. This can rule out any possible over/under estimation of breeds. Please provide the best contact number for our Geneticist to reach you at. Thank you so much!

Best Regards,

Customer Care

Mars Veterinary"

Yes, it appears to be a form letter where the names are filled in, but it's a START!

I replied requesting a new swab be tested, since the name mix up occurred, I explained I do not trust the proper info is attached to the correct swab & that retesting the wrong swab, or a swab contaminated with another dogs dna is pointless & will yield the same results.

Thoughts?
 

LizB

Well-Known Member
I replied requesting a new swab be tested, since the name mix up occurred, I explained I do not trust the proper info is attached to the correct swab & that retesting the wrong swab, or a swab contaminated with another dogs dna is pointless & will yield the same results.

This is a very good idea, and they should not balk at this. It sounds like they run the samples through a general process, and only if they get complaints does an actual biologist personally evaluate it. You are definitely getting somewhere!
 

raechiemay

Well-Known Member
I'd ask for a new swab also as at this point I'm not even sure if they have the original swab? Wouldn't they just throw it away? The letter does seem very generic & makes me wonder how many times a week do they send this exact letter out?
 

Catia

Well-Known Member
Mars owns every DNA company, bio-pet, canine heritage, so has no competitors, can do as they please.

Here is the respose to my request for a new swab--& we all lknow good & damn well it doesn't cost anymore to run a new swab than it does to run an old swab...

"Thank you for your response. Our science team will decide at the end of the escalation process if a retest is necessary for Tessa. This is the current process we have in place before we can send out a replacement kit. We do apologize for the mistaken names that were left on the voicemail. As there was a confusion with the person you spoke to at the call center. The information she provided in your ticket had a different pet owner name and pet name, but the sample ID # for Tessa was correct. In addition, the possibility of a sample mix up is 3 in 29,000. We maintain high quality control levels in our laboratory to ensure mix ups do not happen.

The manual re-analysis that will be performed on Tessa's sample, involves our Geneticist manually selecting the breeds. As opposed to our computer algorithm selecting the best matches. This could rule out any possible over/under estimations of breeds that were selected by the algorithm.

If you have any additional questions, please do not hesitate to contact us at customercare@marsveterinary.com or 888-K9 PET TEST (1-888-597-3883)."

***I call BULLSH*T***
 

Iymala

Well-Known Member
yeah, lots of bullshit. Most companies do not have "High- quality control" in one part of their organization and then a circus in every other aspect of it. I hope they come back with something more accurate, but I am not holding my breath.
 

raechiemay

Well-Known Member
How in the hell do they come up with 3 in 29,000. Did someone manually calculate that or did their computer algorithm calculate that too? Geez.
 

Catia

Well-Known Member
I did an internet search--*BOTH* emails I received from Mars Veterinary are the same exact form letters that everyone else gets who questions the results--they just plug in the name of the dog--Si it's not like someone typed me an email, they just clicked a button to choose a pre-typed form letter.

So much for quality control & customer service--obviously they have enough people questioning their results to warrant needing form type letters.

As for the 3 in 29,000--yeah--it's total BS--anyone can see that--I think they just make stuff up.
If you pic 1 breed from a toy breed, 1 breed from a medium & 1 from a large--maybe a dog will fall in between.
I'm not having much faith in their product at this point, & I do not see quality control--
Their "escalation" process is in place because they have so many complaints-I do not think anyone is actually performing REAL customer service--everything is form letters & unprofessional people on the phone.
 

Catia

Well-Known Member
Just wanted to give an update on where I am with all of the bullsh*t with Mars Veterinary Wisdom Panel 2.0 issues.

I just spent 45 minutes on the phone--all this company does customer service wise is stonewall--they REFUSE to put you through to anyone in management. Every time I have called, I get the same exact "flip chart" responses--"they are in a meeting" & I ask for names & I do not get any names.

Here is what I have now been told--there is 1 "scientist" by the name of Angela Huges who works for this company.
Apparently this is their only scientist. I asked what type of credentials & I did not get an answer other than "scientist"...
I asked if she were a geneticist, I was told she is a 'scientist' who knows everything about dog genetics...LOL Mars's people do nothing but talk around everything & I did not receive 1 clear answer.

I have also been told I must wait until August 15th to speak to anyone concerning Tessa's DNA results.
Mars determines the date. On 8/15/2013 the pic that I sent to Mars Veterinary will be reviewed and a case manager--*not a scientist* will determine ***IF***the computer generated algorhythm was off & ***IF** it warrants a retest.
The pic I sent was only of Tessa's paw in my hand when she was 11wks old--I did not give any other pics.

So basically, my info is sitting in a pile somewhere, and on 8/15/2013 some miscellaneous person will decide ***IF*** a retest is warranted.
I was told verbatim I must wait the FULL 21 days--when I said it HAS BEEN 21 days--I was then told it must be 21 *business days from the date that Mars determines the escalation began*...

The actual process of escalation for me began 7/12/2012--so it has been 24 full days.
Mars decided my escalation process started 7/19/2013....
& 21 business days is 8/15/2013 & that I am not allowed to speak to anyone until then & only then will someone pull my file & determine if they believe a skrew up was made....

Mars customer service rep ***BLAMED*** the delay on me--stating that because I did not immediately disclose **PICTURES**the process did not begin...

Let me state for the record--Mars customer service reps are TRAINED to NOT let your call go any further--no matter what you say or ask--you will not be given any clear answers other than you must wait the full 21 *business days* & then MARS will decide what they will allow as far as a retest.

I was told "everybody wants a retest-we cannot just retest everyones dog because it does not look like the breeds we selected, so your issue will be handled in the order it was received on 8/15/2013"

You will be given no names of people you can contact, no admin info--no matter how many times & ways you ask--the only thing you can get is their email adr & the same cust serv # I already dialed so may times.

No one seems to be accountable--and Mars makes the decisions, not the CONSUMER.
 
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allsierra123

Well-Known Member
I'm still going witg they are offering a novelty service. They are banking in tge fact most customers take there word for it and the rest they can run around until they give up. Sounds like a scam.

Sent from my HTC VLE_U using Tapatalk 2
 

Catia

Well-Known Member
Well, I don't think scam *yet*.


I do however believe that the people who post their pics 1st don't get DNA tests performed...they ***REALLY***push/beg/demand photos...
It *does* scream scam when they want pics to do a DNA analysis...
This girl made it quit clear that my "escalation process" would never have began if they did not receive a photo...

If I were able to speak to a real person in administration, I may have a different feeling, but calling Mars is WORSE THAN CALLING THE DMV...

The technology is there--What I do think is going on at Mars Veterinary is POOR QUALITY CONTROL poor management & a bunch of effin kids (sounds like teens or early twenties) who don't have a clue. You don't need much experience to answer a phone. I'm talking to kids on the phone--highschool or college kids.

The illusion Mars puts forth is that you are sending a test to a DNA lab-A REAL lab--like a Quest Diagnostics for dogs-the reality is that it's something fed through a computer by unskilled workers who have no backround in genetics-and apparently there's only 1 person with any credentials that somewhat realted to canine genetics.

I have heard--from this customer service rep at Mars-- that the lawsuit between Canine Heritage & Mars was that for 1 month Mars would get all of the money & tests that were purchased under the Canine Heritage label & that after that 1 month, all of the tests & $$$ went beck to Canine Heritage.

Every Canine Heritage site I've gone to redirects to Mars...

Been looking in the UK & canada to see if any company other than mars does DNA testing--have not found one yet...
Looked up universities, & breed specific test are done for things like genetic disease markers.
 

CowboyBebop

Well-Known Member
Catia, Sorry you are going through all of this. I did DNA paternity testing awhile back. It is HIGHLY likely that there was an admin error. The fact that the ID number matches to Tessa likely means very little. I can understand the company's hesitance in re-running another sample as the reagents to do actual DNA testing are VERY expensive, but it should have been their 1st course to correct a major discrepancy, which this obviously is. I'd skip the hassle and go to the Attorney General. Screw the BBB.