Colour / Pattern / Markings - Importance?

[persephone]

having never actually bought/chosen a dog/pup I don't know .. all my dogs have found me .. and have all been just right

[horus]

When rehoming Dalmatians colour/pattern/marking do certainly affect their chances of finding a home quickly (generally speaking). Most people seem to have a preference for black spotted over liver spotted and heavily spotted Dals are not as easy to rehome as lightly spotted Dals. Some people may even see heavily marked Dals as being faulty in some way.

We quite often get enquiries for a certain colour (black or liver) and these people will forgo the opportunity to meet a Dal of the other colour and wait for their specific choice, mostly because they have previously lived with a Dal of that colour.

I was guilty of intially preferring black spotted Dals over liver spotted. When I first purchased a Dal puppy (20 years ago)I was offered a liver spotted pup but decided on a black spotted simply because I believed (at that time) that a true Dalmatian had to have black spots. Now, 5 Dalmatians later, I have 2 liver spotted and I am more than happy to acknowledge how wrong I was back then.

In the Dalmatian world colour and markings certainly can be important.

[poodlefan]

PF- In what way are labradors affected?

At the risk of Sandgrubber raining fire on me because "I hate the breed".. the current craze for chocolates. Don't get me wrong... love the colour but do a casual browse for litters avaliable and conclude for yourself how many dogs are being bred for that characteristic first and foremost by folk who don't seem to do anything with their dogs.

Ok thanks

Wasn't sure if you were referring to the "silver" colour- they don't seem to be big here in aus yet thank goodness!

I don't profess to have any understanding of the genetics of Labrador colour breeding but from info posted here by those who do, the 'silver' required crossbreeding to create within the Labrador.

Oh, here's another example of colour breeding in a breed I know better. In the showring, flashy parti-colour Whippets dominate. I was told by an Australian breeder and judge of the breed that in the USA where parti-colours dominate even more than here that parti to parti matings are resulting in dogs with more and more white and that deafness is now cropping up in the breed.

Actually, in some breeds there are colours I would avoid and in many (not all) breeds I'd avoid blue and white because the colours do seem to be linked to increased health issues.

[Gayle.]

I have a favourite colour in my own breed......I love black tri's, but I don't have a least favourite colour so I'd probably be happy with anything. At the moment, pics of Aussies with all black faces tend to reduce me to tears and I doubt I could own another one any time soon, but maybe one day.

The blue merles tend to attract more attention than the black tris and I almost always draw a few admirers when I'm out and about with the merles, but I love the stark contrast between the solid black and sparkling white, and the richness of the tan points.

I like even markings rather than an offset blaze or one white leg and one coloured leg. But that wouldn't be a deal breaker for me.

In other breeds I have favoured colours.....collies I prefer merles, border collies I prefer black and white, Tibetan Terriers I prefer gold and white, or white with black patches, GSD's I prefer all black.....but it's unlikely I'll ever own any of those breeds so it's just liking those colours, not wanting them.

[Henrietta]

I have favourite colours in breeds I am interested in. But colour itself is so far down in my list of priorities it isn't likely to ever play a role in my decision. If there were two dogs of similar structure, health and temperament, and I didn't get a strong feeling either way personality wise... well, maybe colour would be the deciding factor.

But ultimately temperament and structure/health are the most important things to me. I've actually learnt this the hard way (not so much because I chose colour over more important factors, moreso I didn't understand the basic fundamentals of purchasing a dog and thought temperament traits could be completely changed through socialisation and training - long story. I've been - touch wood - very lucky with health... But I'll not be taking any chances next time around). I just want a sound, healthy, active, confident companion with a temperament that is befitting the breed. The way I see it, my favourite colour or marking is not going to make the heartbreak of a preventable health problem or temperament issue any less.

Edit - I am also pretty set on the idea that I will find an excellent breeder, who I will entrust with choosing a puppy for me or at least strongly guide me through the selection process.

Edited September 23, 2011 by Henrietta

[SparkyTansy]

I originally had a preference for tri colour or blue belton english setters. I got my first Tri colour and he just happened to be show quality so started to show. I still had a preference for blue/tri when i waited for my next ES 3 years later. I waited for 1 year for the right blue or tri to come up before telling the breeder that colour was no longer important, as long as the temperament suited spartan's, he fitted into what i wanted, and he had show potential. I ended up with an Orange boy and have to say I will have either colour in a heartbeat now. In saying that though, I don't like them lightly marked/almost white but I wouldn't knock it back necessarily.

[melzawelza]

I would turn down the perfect dog based on colour and markings. HOWEVER I wouldn't take a dog that didn't tick the other boxes but was the right colour. I would simply wait as long as it took to find the pup with the best temperament, conformation, health that ALSO was a colour or marking that I preferred. I think there is a big difference between the two.

Edited September 23, 2011 by melzawelza

[dotdashdot]

For me, it is important, but only in certain breeds. We had a kelpie x husky pup for 6 short months before she crossed the rainbow bridge and ANY breed with her brown/tan markings wrenches my heart, I love those markings and would buy another dog like it. I still like other kelpie colours though, I just have a preference for this particular type.

In my own breed, like Horus said, marking are important (dalmatian). The colour not so much, I love b&w which I have, and would love a liver! The markings though, I would never go more heavily spotted than Cleo is, just doesn't appeal to me. She is more heavily spotted than we were looking for at the time though, so I've already been through the "if the most suitable puppy came up" option. That said, too lightly spotted isn't very nice either, a good spattering of spots is just right.

I would also take on a blue-eyed dal if one popped up, blue eyes are a fault in the ring (which I am getting into) but they are so gorgeous, I couldn't turn it down. I would only take it if it popped up randomly/recessively though.

[poodlefan]

For me, it is important, but only in certain breeds. We had a kelpie x husky pup for 6 short months before she crossed the rainbow bridge and ANY breed with her brown/tan markings wrenches my heart, I love those markings and would buy another dog like it. I still like other kelpie colours though, I just have a preference for this particular type.

In my own breed, like Horus said, marking are important (dalmatian). The colour not so much, I love b&w which I have, and would love a liver! The markings though, I would never go more heavily spotted than Cleo is, just doesn't appeal to me. She is more heavily spotted than we were looking for at the time though, so I've already been through the "if the most suitable puppy came up" option. That said, too lightly spotted isn't very nice either, a good spattering of spots is just right.

I would also take on a blue-eyed dal if one popped up, blue eyes are a fault in the ring (which I am getting into) but they are so gorgeous, I couldn't turn it down. I would only take it if it popped up randomly/recessively though.

Serious question.. are more heavily spotted Dals and those with darker ears (like your avatar dog) less likely to be deaf? I know coloured ears are an indicator of hearing in another mostly white breed.

Edited September 23, 2011 by poodlefan

[Pretty Miss Emma]

I would like to have a Tri, but if I wasn't happy to have a b&w then I wouldn't have Kenz! But I'd still love a tri, and now even a bit more so because I'd really love my next dog to be significantly different in appearance to Miss Emma. But it's always about the dog not about the colour for me.

[Poppy's mum]

I'm a case in point -I want a grey to replace my darling Tielle who was a glamorous blue. I'd like a brindle or a parti- colour for novelty value but the most important consideration is that they are totally reliable with/ fit into my brood. I'm going to see a black dog shortly. Not my first preference but colour is not the primary concern.

[HazyWal]

having never actually bought/chosen a dog/pup I don't know .. all my dogs have found me .. and have all been just right

Me too.

[Alkhe]

I'm only delighted I'm not an SBT or Labrador breeder - they seem to be two breeds badly afflicted with colour breeding atm. Poodles also have it as an issue.

What are the most 'fashionable' poodle colours at the moment? Just out of curiosity - I'd assume perhaps apricot or red (is that even a colour? I'm thinking of the very dark apricot..)? I personally don't understand why silver Poodles aren't more popular and in demand. I have a silver toy and so many people have commented on her colour. If it's not 'oh, I hardly ever see silver poodles! how beautiful', it's 'wow, I didn't even know you could get silver *insert "oodle" breed*'

[Chris the Rebel Wolf]

Hmm, the last question was a tough one for me. I voted yes in the end, because typically I would be looking for a particular colour in a purebred, as well as temperament. But it wouldn't be the be-all-and-end-all decision maker or breaker

[HazyWal]

I'm a case in point -I want a grey to replace my darling Tielle who was a glamorous blue. I'd like a brindle or a parti- colour for novelty value but the most important consideration is that they are totally reliable with/ fit into my brood. I'm going to see a black dog shortly. Not my first preference but colour is not the primary concern.

Stan was my first foster(and failure)and is a stunning blue boy.Whilst I love the blue I adopted him for being the quirky dumbo he is and I mean that in the nicest possible way.My second foster failure Maddie is white with a brindle patch on her bum.Definately not a colour I would have chosen but I didn't have a choice she chose me.Like you I love the brindles so many variations.I know how much you have put in to finding the right dog for your family so hopefully(I think it's Sophie you are looking at)will be the grey for you. Good luck.

[sandgrubber]

Found it hard to reply. I basically don't care about colour, but in Labs the bb/ee cannot be shown. So, as a small breeder with a choco bitch, I would not get a yellow dog. There are so many dogs to choose from, it's good, in some ways, to use colour to narrow the field.

[jesomil]

For a pet dog, the colour/patterns/markings are very important. I really have to like the look of a dog and would say no to a dog that didnt have the colour I was after.

For a show dog, the structure is more important and I would choose the better build over colour. With working dogs, their ability is most important and colour doesnt even come into it (hence the ugly but good worker I have )

[newfsie]

I prefer all black newfies, no white at all, but i have taken a puppy with quite a lot of white, because she was perfect otherwise.......She had three white feet and a huge white bib

[RuralPug]

Trying to answer the question as if I was just looking for a pet companion, then colour/pattern wouldn't matter a whit to me in a cross breed, and would only need to be an acceptable one in a purebred.

But if was was looking for more than a companion, colour/markings may well be of more importance to me - maybe I wanted a terrier type to hunt with I would probably look for a lot of white so I could easily find them down the rabbit hole, maybe I would need a dog that had a white tail tip for various reasons of visibility, maybe I wanted a herding dog with a coat that would either stand out from, or blend in with, the stock.

And in the show ring and breeding world, colour and marking must have some weight, and if, as you said "all else being equal" then yes, it would make a lot of difference.

[Cleo's Corgwyn]

As a pet owner, and a performance dog trainer, those are my first priorities. I would first look for a pup that would fit into our family and situation, and get on with my current dog, and then one with the drive, confidence and temperament to be a performance prospect. I would then consider colour. My girl is definitely not my first pick of colour, but given that I wanted a young adult dog with potential for training, colour wasn't even a consideration.

If I get a pup,like an earlier poster said, I will be aiming to get one from lines and temperaments that I like, which will probably include that I like the looks, but while my absolute preference would be a blue merle boy with heterochromatic eye colour, but I would take anything that had the right temp and fit (luckily a blue merle bitch is only likely to produce my two favourite colours, merles and brindle pointed tri!)