All The Colors Of The Doberman Pinscher

John Jackson on Jul 10, 2009

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Many people are not aware that a Doberman Pinscher can be any color other than black with marking that are tan. Although this may be the most typical color, the breed actually has two genes for color. One gene is for black. The other gene can show as several types including black, blue, fawn (Isabella) or red. The actual color of the Doberman Pinscher will depend on the dominant or recessive gene for color in each particular animal. For the dog to be black and tan, it will need at least one dominant allele (a part of a pair of genes on a single chromosome) in its color gene and what is called the color dilution gene. You will find that the most common colors are likely to be red or red and (in the US terms) dust (brown for everyone else). Basically the color of a Doberman Pinscher depends on its genes.

The color dilution genes are completely responsible for the fawn and blue colors. The way it works is that, when the Doberman Pinscher is the aforementioned colors, the color dilution genes are recessive while the color gene has one dominant allele. Unfortunately, Dobermans with this coloring are prone to a non life threatening disorder called Color Dilution Alopecia. With this disease, the particular dog may suffer from skin problems and loose hair. Because of this they are prohibited from entering international competition by the FCI and the German kennel club has banned their breeding. On the other hand, many kennel clubs will accept the dogs.

There are actually white Doberman Pinschers. The first white one was born in 1976 and bred with her litter. There was much controversy surrounding the white Doberman and the inbreeding was an attempt to control the breeding of the white dogs which were being sold for exorbitant prices because they were such unique animals. As it turns out, the white Doberman Pinscher, is albino and there are the same medical issues as with all albino animals such as retinal problems and fragile, delicate skin that is harmed by the sun. Currently, the breeding of albino Dobermans is highly discouraged because of all the health issues. There continues to be controversy about the ethics of breeding albino Doberman Pinschers because of the risks. Although albinos are accepted ito the American Kennel Club, they are unable to enter any competition and as mentioned, many breeders won't breed albinos because of health concerns.

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