The effective conservation of the dingo in Australia requires that a purebred animal can be reliably distinguished from a hybrid domestic dog. Even though the dingo and the dog are closely related differences in DNA between them can be used as the basis of a test to detect hybrids. Genetic markers that show high variability between individuals may show differences between related groups. Microsatellite loci show very high variability and many are available for the dog. From 72 microsatellites tested, 12 show distinct differences in the alleles found in dingoes and dogs. Microsatellites that are diagnostic, that is show no overlap between alleles in the dingo and the dog, are the most useful for testing. However, conditions are not ideal for detecting these since some dog breeds have dingo ancestry and the purity of dingoes currently in captivity is not guaranteed. Estimates of purity can still be made by comparing the relative likelihoods of an animal belonging to one group or another based on the frequency of the alleles found in that animal in the groups being compared.