Written by Megan Panton of MuttMix and Anastasia Wilkinson
Professional photography by @Strike a Pose Photo / Video
MuttMix writes...
Some dogs enter your life quietly.
Frieda was never one of those dogs.
When her family visited TEARS in search of the missing piece of their animal-loving household, they found a four-month-old puppy with one blue eye, one brown eye, and enough bounce to power a small city. They were warned she was a firecracker. They had no idea just how accurate that warning would prove to be.
From her earliest days in rescue alongside her sister, to her unforgettable April Fool’s Day homecoming, Frieda has filled every corner of her family’s life with chaos, laughter, love, and more than a few flying humans.
But despite her larger-than-life personality, one question followed her everywhere: “What breed is she?”
When her family finally decided to uncover the mystery through MuttMix, they expected a few familiar breeds. What they discovered instead was a genetic combination that explained everything – from the endless energy and incredible intelligence to the clownish charm and unwavering devotion.
And hidden within the results was one breed that suddenly made all the madness make perfect sense...
Meet Frieda – the rescue dog whose DNA story is every bit as extraordinary as she is.
Written by Anastasia Wilkinson...
Her story begins long before Frieda was even a twinkle in her mother’s eye.
We’re a family of cat and dog lovers but had only ventured as far as cat babies and human babies. We’d been longing to add a hound to our brood, so when we finally felt we could give a pooch the home it deserved, we ventured off to TEARS fully knowing our future was about to change.
There, surrounded by a collection of delicious little pups, was our babe, already four months old. We had an idea of what we were in for. She sat there with her one blue eye and her one brown eye and unashamedly stole our hearts.
She was the bounciest of all the pups there (and still is over two years later). In all fairness, we were warned that she was a bit of a firecracker.
It all began for her when Frieda and her sister Isabella were brought in to TEARS with their mum. Mum was sterilised and went back home with her family.
The two five-week-old pups ended up at a couple of different foster homes until they were old enough to be at the kennels at TEARS. We were able to bring her home with us on the 1st of April (April Fool’s Day – this isn’t lost on us).
Since her arrival, there’s been so much curiosity about what this creature is made of and what breeds are in the mix, so when we found out about MuttMix it was a no-brainer. We were so intrigued. Doing this MuttMix test has been such a wonderful experience.
So enlightening and handled with such love and care, it’s been a blast from the get-go. From the minute we received our test kit (with all the spoils) to the moment we received our results – such an eye-opener, such a treat and a such a wonderful experience.
We’d honestly expected to see mostly Pit Bull in the results and possibly some Boerboel and maybe some Staffie, but there was something missing, some mysterious link. There had to be an explanation for the extra-craziness!
And there it was! Or should I say, there THEY were... In the MuttMix results.
21% Boston Terrier
19% American Staffordshire Terrier
17% Belgian Malinois
16% French Bulldog
14% American Pit Bull Terrier
13% Staffordshire Bull Terrier
21% Boston Terrier – total shocker right over here, but if we prop up her ears to stand up, and certain looks she gives us, we can totally see it. Velcro dog, check. Sensitive, oh my gosh yes, check. Playful and goofy, hell yes. Craziest zoomies you’ll ever see.
19% American Staffordshire Terrier, this one didn’t surprise us. Her confidence is through the roof and her strong-willed nature. Sheesh. She’s also INCREDIBLY strong, like “break a leash in a week” strong and sending adult hoomans flying on impact (the count so far is five – sorry again guys). The prey drive that’ll have her bouncing in the fields for hours and digging herself, full body height, in molehills to catch a dune rat. It’s next level, really.
17% Belgian Malinois – yes, you read it! We’d be lying to say this hasn’t crossed our minds more than once. It’s so her. The love for her dog training sessions (that we still do every Saturday), the love for tasks to do, tricks, her mouthy bitey loves in the morning, and the reason for the love-bruises all over mom’s forearms. The way she’ll go-go-go without a thought for danger or potential injury.
16% French Bulldog – another shocker, but it explains a lot about why our large medium 30-kilogram dog thinks she’s a lap dog.
14% American Pit Bull Terrier – this is her beautiful face. And build. And the energy.
And definitely the clown in her.
13% Staffordshire Bull Terrier – the rest of her face.
Her top-notch smile that’ll melt your heart any day of the week. Unless you’re a bad guy...
She’s just such a delight. She loves us unconditionally. She understands to be gentle with our kids, she has beautiful food manners. She really is just a big baby who likes to act big.
She’s our shining star and the happiest part of our days.
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