Shelties

[Melissa_W]

Originally Posted by LabBreeder

WOW Skye is beautiful!

But yes, some breeds have coat color related issues. Yellow Labs, for example, are more prone to sun burn, skin conditions, skin cancer from sun exposure, etc. due to the light pigment. (Or so I've heard!)

Thanks LabBreeder. He's a little dirty in those pics, you can see it on his paws.

That's interesting about the yellow labs... I'm gonna do some research about Shelties and see what I can find. Oh, and if you have any links about it Stevinski, I'd definitely like to see.

[Melissa_W]

Stevinski, are you sure that you aren't thinking of double merles?

Merle genetics
http://bowlingsite.mcf.com/Genetics/Merle.html

Sable merles are no more likely to have health problems than any other color, and they are equally good companions. Many do have colors that are not accepted in the show ring, either because they have blue or merle eyes or because the mottling produced by the merle gene is too obvious. The real arguement against sable merles is that they may be mistaken for normal sables. If two such sable merles were mated together, the resulting litter could contain defective whites. What a shock for the breeder expecting normal, healthy puppies!

Sheltie FAQ
http://www.faqs.org/faqs/dogs-faq/breeds/shelties/

Blue Merles are genetically black Shelties whose coat color has been
modified by the merling gene. This makes them appear to be dappled
silver and black, usually with black patches. Blue merles also differ
from other Shelties in that they may have blue or brown eyes (or one
of each), or merle eyes, which appear to be both brown and blue. This
does not indicate any vision deficiency. Blue merles are also usually
marked with varying amounts of white, and may or may not have tan
markings. Those without tan markings are called Bi-Blues.

There are two kinds of white Shelties. One type is called the
"color-headed white." "White factor" determines the Sheltie's
so-called Dutch or Irish markings (the white collar, bib and cuffs)
which are associated with Lassie but are not required for the show
ring. Some heavily white-factored dogs have white haunches and legs, a
huge white collar, and completely white shoulders and forelegs. Such a
dog may have so much white on its body that only a "saddle" or a few
patches of color remain. Its head, however, contains no more white
than any other Sheltie's might. (This is similar to what is called
parti-color in other breeds). At present, the AKC Standard severely
penalizes any show Sheltie that is over 50% white. However,
color-headed white Collies have long been accepted in the show ring,
and many fanciers believe color-headed white Shelties should be also.
In any event, color headed whites are completely normal. They can be
shown at non-AKC shows and are entirely suitable as pets or obedience
dogs.

The same cannot be said for the white "double" or homozygous merles
which result from merle-merle breedings. (Usually the parents are both
blues, but there are rare sable merles as well. Sheltie color genetics
are very complicated, and no one should attempt breeding without a
thorough understanding of all the possibilities.) The "double merle"
usually has a great deal of white on its head as well as its body.
These dogs are blind unless a black patch appears over an eye, and
deaf unless a black patch appears over an ear. They frequently have
heart and other problems as well, and are not recommended as pets.

With the exception of the "double" merle described above, Shelties of
all colors make equally satisfactory companions. There is no
connection between a Sheltie's temperament or trainability and its
coat color. Although the sables continue to be popular with the
public, many breed fanciers prefer the blue merles and tri-colors.

There's a lot of other good stuff in that FAQ. If you are thinking of a sheltie, you should check it out.

[femke]

I think that's the thing yeah, I remember reading about that as well.

I just have the one shelties, Penny. She's a tri-colour.

I reaaaaaaly want another one but can't afford it right now. If I do get another one I would like a male either a sable or a blue merle. I find with the blue merles some of them I absolutely LOVE and others I dont like the look of them too much. So I guess it would all depend on the pup. Maybe some day....

BTW Melissa yours is absolutely gorgeous!! (have seen him in previous pictures too)

[Melissa_W]

Originally Posted by femke

I think that's the thing yeah, I remember reading about that as well.

I just have the one shelties, Penny. She's a tri-colour.

I reaaaaaaly want another one but can't afford it right now. If I do get another one I would like a male either a sable or a blue merle. I find with the blue merles some of them I absolutely LOVE and others I dont like the look of them too much. So I guess it would all depend on the pup. Maybe some day....

BTW Melissa yours is absolutely gorgeous!! (have seen him in previous pictures too)

Skye says thank you.

[stevinski]

i always thought tht melissa W had a rough collie but i must be thinkin on someone else lol!

i will check into the merle thing, cause i always thought that they had health issues and a way to reduce the risk of health issues was to breed a merle to a different colour such as a tri or a sable, but if you bred a merle to a merle you were almost certain to have issues.

i will check anyway lol

[stevinski]

i got this from the internet:
Merle is actually a heterozygote of an incomplete dominance gene. If two such dogs are mated, on the average one quarter of the puppies will be double merles and some percentage of these double merle puppies could have eye defects and/or could be deaf. Knowledgeable breeders who want to produce merle puppies mate a merle with a nonmerle dog; roughly half the puppies will be merles without the risk of vision or hearing defects.

so basically its only double merles that have the issues

http://bowlingsite.mcf.com/Genetics/Merle.html heres a link to some info on merle genetics

i still want a sable or tri-factor sheltie though lol
i might look into the merles

[SummerRiot]

You can breed a merle to a merle - you just might end up with a lot of 'white' on the babies. I haven't known any breeders that do breed them though. Its usually Merle to Tris


Femke - there is a special shampoo that you can get Penny as well to get her coat nice and black again. Its specifically for dark coloured dogs. I'll have to find out what its called I THINK its called "Blue Black" and its sold at dog shows in the stands. Its AMAZING stuff though.

The Gronendael owners use it to get the red tinge out of their coats as well.
Just be careful around her white chest etc.

[Melissa_W]

Originally Posted by SummerRiot

You can breed a merle to a merle - you just might end up with a lot of 'white' on the babies. I haven't known any breeders that do breed them though. Its usually Merle to Tris


Femke - there is a special shampoo that you can get Penny as well to get her coat nice and black again. Its specifically for dark coloured dogs. I'll have to find out what its called I THINK its called "Blue Black" and its sold at dog shows in the stands. Its AMAZING stuff though.

The Gronendael owners use it to get the red tinge out of their coats as well.
Just be careful around her white chest etc.

Yup, you "can" do it, but you shouldn't do it.

You mate merles with Tris, like you said, or mate them with bi-blacks to get a bi-blue. I like the bi-blacks a lot too, very pretty...



This dog is named Skylar, hehehe... I think he's a really pretty bi-blue.

[stevinski]

they are both gorgeous dogs Mellisa W!
i was just wondering what is a bi-blue? like what does the blue stand for, same wid the black,
some of the colours are so confusing lol
i no what a tri-factor sable is i think its a sheltie whos parents where a sable and a tri
i might be wrong, please correct me if i am lol

[stevinski]

i would really prefer a sable but now i know that merles dont have many issues,
i most want a sable, second tri and then a merle lol but colour shouldnt really be the main factor in choosin a show dog, i wouldnt really want a black and white though lol