Color/type and temperament?

[Dekka]

ALL labs are genetically yellow. The black gene is epistatic though.

Labrador Retriever coat colour genetics - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia for a fairly understandable explanation of lab coat colours.

 

[Psyfalcon]

ALL labs are genetically yellow. The black gene is epistatic though.

Labrador Retriever coat colour genetics - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia for a fairly understandable explanation of lab coat colours.

?

It says, as I read it, a Lab can be BB or Bb or bb (Black, Black, Chocolate) with the E gene then acting on that, the ability to show the colors from the B gene.

 

[Amstaffer]

Red Nose Pits are tougher....right?

 

[sillysally]

Still doesn't explain the lab color/temperament correlation at all though.

I don't think it's as across the board as everyone thinks it is with the chocolates, but I do think there is some basis to that belief. As chocolates became more popular, you saw TONS of BYBs pop up that only bred chocolates (and there still are), without much regard for anything else.

 

[Dekka]

?

It says, as I read it, a Lab can be BB or Bb or bb (Black, Black, Chocolate) with the E gene then acting on that, the ability to show the colors from the B gene.

Yep

So all labs are base yellow.

Really I don't think there is any actual causation happening with coat colour and temperament. Just other variables that are linked to both. Like popularity of a colour and byb, or popularity of a sire and colour etc.

 

[ihartgonzo]

IMHO, Black Labs are by far more hyper than any other Lab... and crazier. I find Chocolates to be the coolest/mellowest. Yellows are all over the board, in my experience, but they are also the most prolific humpers. hehe

I agree that smoother Border Collies tend to be crazier! Fo sho. I'm not sure about reds, as I've met just a handful of reds and probably thousands of blacks. I judge Border Collies more on their eyes; there are more wild-eyed BC's, and more gentle/soft-eyed BC's. I like a BC that really looks into your eyes and understands you, rather than one who just stares AT you. If that makes any sense at all...

 

[Lizmo]

How much truth is there to sayings like these:


- Similarly, red border collies are the craziest
- Or smooth border collies have a harder temperament than roughs

Never heard it before now.

 

[setter-chick]

Gingers are more bratty/more to handle then tris, but it might be because there are less of them and they get more attention then tris...

 

[dogsarebetter]

Red Nose Pits are tougher....right?

and the red nose pits have those extra locked jaws and double sets a teeth!

 

[corgipower]

and the red nose pits have those extra locked jaws and double sets a teeth!

:rofl1::rofl1::rofl1:

 

[Laurelin]

See it seems almost across the board red or chocolate colored dogs in breeds are considered more insane or more hyper.

Wasn't there a study recently saying red hair in humans was linked to pain tolerance?

 

[Toller_08]

I'm not really sure if it's myth or not. I know all the Chocolate Labs I've been around are not very nice dogs temperament wise -- they are insanely hyper and just look crazy, haha. The blacks and yellows I know are for the most part much calmer/easier to get along with. I can't say that colour alone is the deciding factor though in a dog's temperament -- it's more likely based on the breeding of the dog/where it came from.

I know I haven't really noticed a difference temperament wise between different colours of Dobermans. I've been told numerous times that red Dobes are sillier and more energetic than black Dobes, but I truly haven't noticed that at all. Ripley is sillier than Keira, but I chalk that up to the fact that he's a male Doberman puppy. None of the other reds I know are really different to the blacks either.

 

[misfitz]

Wasn't there a study recently saying red hair in humans was linked to pain tolerance?

Huh, I'd be interested in reading that one. I'm a redhead and I have NO tolerance for pain!

There might be some truth to the color & temperment corrolations, though. When they bred the tame foxes, they were breeding only for temperment, but what they ended up with were all kinds of different physical traits - drop ears, curly tails, and bi-color coats for example.

Furthermore, changes in behavior occurred simultaneously with changes in tail position and ear shape, and the appearance of a white muzzle, forehead blaze, and white shoulder hair. The white color pattern on the head is similar to many domestic animals (Belyaev 1979) (Figs. 1.1 and 1.2). The most dog-like foxes had white spots and patterns on their heads, drooping ears, and curled tails and looked more like dogs than the foxes that avoided people. The behavioral and morphological (appearance) changes were also correlated with corresponding changes in the levels of gender hormones. The tame foxes had higher levels of the neurotransmitter serotonin (Popova et al., 1975). Serotonin is known to inhibit some kinds of aggression (Belyaev, 1979), and serotonin ~levels are increased in the brains of people who take Prozac (fluoxetine).

From Behavioral Genetics and Animal Science

And I think coat color and behavior are both affected by hormones. I'm looking for some more good links on the subject & will post them when I can find some! Stay tuned...I think this is a fascinating subject. opcorn:

Edited to add:
In the Coppingers' book, Dogs (Amazon.com: Dogs: A Startling New Understanding of Canine Origin, Behavior & Evolution (9780684855301): Raymond Coppinger, Lorna Coppinger: Books)
I believe they go into this a bit as well, the different breed types were originally selected for behavior and performance as hunting, herding, guarding, etc. breeds. Physical appearance varied a lot at first, but gradually became more similar within the different groups. Form following function?

 

[misfitz]

Not really related, but interesting. Mis-marked purebred Labs:

Mismarks & other odd markings in Labradors part 2 - Woodhaven Labradors

 

[yoko]

i think what happens is people think like:

oh this color is hyper i need one with a lot of energy and then raise dog as such... i that that is more of an influence then actual colors

 

[jasmom87]

The study on redheads would be interesting. I'm a redhead and high a very high threshold for pain.

Relating to the cockers, I had buff cockers and they were very laid back and great with kids. I heard parti's had more energy. My red/white parti was higher energy. All parti colored that I know are more on the go.

 

[Upendi&Mina]

You mentioned about mixed breeds having more of the temperament of the breed they predominately look like and I"ll give my two cents. Mina definitely has the aussie personality, and looks more aussie than lab to me (smooth coated as she is). Upendi on the other hand looks mostly gsd and has more of a husky personality.

 

[misfitz]

Here's another article -

Dogs of Rarotonga | Genetics | DISCOVER Magazine

Not easy to find, and now I'm going out, so that's the end of my 'research' for now!

And I think the other stuff I read about this was in Temple Grandin's book Animals Make Us Human.

 

[MericoX]

I think it's red poodles they say are more hyper, while whites and blacks are more laid back.

But I also see it in most breeds where people are breeding for color vs temperment. If I two red hyper poodles that throw awesome color and breed them... you end up with more red hyper poodles. People go omg I need to have one that color, breed it, and red poodles keep on becoming more hyper (ok so I know it's not exactly how it works but you get my point... I hope).

 

[dogsarebetter]

I love the rottie colored labs!

LOL. too bad they are labs. they are the opposite dogs of what i prefer as far as temperament.