15 Dog Coat Colors and Patterns
While natural selection means thousands of years before changes occur, selective breeding speeds up the process greatly, with change often occurring as early as a few generations.
Dog Coat Colors: Variety Is the Spice of Life!
Who doesn’t love dogs? Who doesn't get the urge to pet them and run your fingers through their soft and luxurious fur?!
Did you know that as of 2024, 66 percent of households in the United States (that's 86.9 million homes!) own a pet? Dogs are the most popular pets in the country. Indeed, a whopping 65.1 million households own a dog, followed by cats (46.5 million).
Perhaps what makes dogs so popular is that they come in such a variety of shapes, sizes, and coat colors.
If we think about it, this variety can be quite surprising, considering that dogs descend from wolves and dogs and wolves share the same amount of chromosomes.
Yet wolves are quite uniform in appearance compared to dogs (they have muted coat colors so as to enhance their ability to camouflage), which have colorful coats and carry the well-deserved title of the most diverse land mammal on earth.
So why do dogs come in so many different shapes, sizes, and coat colors?
Charles Darwin was one of the first to wonder about this. In On the Origins of Species, Darwin noted how humans could tinker with genetics by carefully selecting animals with desirable traits and breeding them.
This process is called "selective breeding," and it is thanks to this practice that desirable traits can be passed down to future generations.
A testimony to how quickly selective breeding produces changes, even as early as a decade, is Dmitry K. Belyaev's Farm Fox Experiments.
Still, another interesting fact about dogs is that although there's so much variety between the more than 400 dog breeds, there's also a strong conformity within a specific breed. How fascinating is that?
Most dog breeds are the product of selective breeding taking place in the past 200 to 300 years, particularly in Europe in the 800s.
8 Basic Dog Coat Colors
Despite the vast array of coat colors, most coat colors we see in dogs today result from different concentrations and distributions of eumelanin (a pigment responsible for producing black/brown) and pheomelanin (a pigment responsible for producing red/yellow).
Deviations in these pigments are what cause the expression of different coat colors. For example, did you know genes may modify such pigments to create diluted colors such as liver (light brown), blue (grayish), or Isabella (pale cream)?
Interestingly, pheomelanin is only involved in producing coat colors, while melanin is also involved in giving color to a dog's nose and eyes.
The main coat colors in dogs are solid colors: black, brown, white, and red, which can be further divided into several shades.
1. Black
A black coat in dogs is the result of a high concentration of eumelanin. Black dogs will also have a black nose and black eyes, considering that eumelanin affects eye color. A solid black fur coat color with no red (K) is typically dominant over brown.
2. Brown
A brown coat color in dogs is the result of a moderate to high concentration of eumelanin. Shades may vary from light brown to very dark brown.
Chocolate is often used to describe the brown shade of Labrador Retrievers, while sedge and dead grass are terms used to depict the coat color of the Chesapeake Bay Retriever.
3. White
White occurs when there is no eumelanin or phaeomelanin, basically, no pigment in the fur. Generally, while there is no pigment in the fur, a white dog usually still has some dark pigment around the eye rims and nose, along with dark-colored eyes. This helps distinguish them from a real albino, which has no pigment in the eyes and nose, resulting in pink noses and pink/red eyes.
4. Red
This coat color is due to a high concentration of pheomelanin. Shades may vary from rich mahogany red, as in the Irish Setter, to a lighter, more orangey-red, as seen in the Nova Scotia Dog Tolling Retriever.
5. Yellow
This coat color is due to a moderate concentration of pheomelanin. A classic example of a dog with a yellow coat is the yellow Labrador Retriever.
6. Blue
Blues isn't really Smurf blue, of course! The blue coat, in this case, is a diluted coat color. In a nutshell, the dark eumelanin pigment is diluted from a bluish-grey to a darker steel color.
7. Golden
The Golden Retriever is the poster child of a golden-coated dog. A Golden Retriever's coat color may range from gold, dark gold to light gold. As in yellow and red, gold coat color is due to the concentration of pheomelanin. Genes are responsible for controlling the intensity of phaeomelanin, making the color stronger or weaker.
8. Grey
The Weimaraner is known to have a coat color ranging from shades of mouse gray to silver gray. The Keeshond is another dog breed known for sporting a grey coat. Some dogs also have a greying gene, which causes them to be born solid black and become lighter as they get older.
A display of the eight basic dog coat colors.
Infographic by Alexadry via Canva
Dog Coat Color Patterns
Dogs may also present various color patterns, which consist of distinctive markings or arrangements of colors. Different patterns of a dog's coat will give the average canine an exceptional look.
So, are you ready for some eye candy? The following are some intriguing dog coat color patterns.
The Merle Coat Pattern
Let's start with the merle coat, shall we? This awesome coat pattern looks like dark patches on a dog's skin marbling against a background of a lighter shade. Even merle dogs come in different varieties, such as:
⦁ Blue merle (with mottled black patches)
⦁ Red merle (this one has kind of reddish patches)
Merles may also present with blue eyes or heterochromia, which consists of eyes with different colors.
But don't get misguided by the merle coat's visible appeal! Breeding these dogs together may lead to grave medical consequences.
Suppose you're trying to breed a merle with another merle. In this case, the couple will give birth to a puppy with two copies of the merle gene. We call these pups double merle canines; these poor souls are often born deaf or blind.
A study by Reetz et al. conducted on dachshunds revealed that 54.6 percent of double merles experienced partial hearing loss; while around 9 percent of them were incapable of hearing altogether.
That’s why you should not breed two dogs with the merle coat together to prevent the spread of hereditary problems. Some popular canine breeds with this particular coat color pattern include:
- Australian Shepherds
- Shetland Sheepdogs
- Collies
- Dachshunds (in this breed, merle is often referred to as "dapple")
- Cardigan Welsh Corgi
- Great Danes
Did you know?
The Kennel Club has had a ban on registering double-merle pups for many years.
A merle Australian Shepherd
The Brindle Coat Pattern
“Thrice the brinded cat hath mew'd. Thrice and once the hedge-pig whined.” – William Shakespeare.
From this Shakespearean verse, you can guess that the brindle coat pattern isn't exclusive to dogs, but even swine and felines have it. You may have heard some people referring to it as the tiger-stripe coat pattern because canines wearing it are called "tiger-striped" (and they do resemble a tiger, mind you!).
These stripes are irregular, dark, and prominent against a lighter base color, usually fawn, gray, or brown.
You can find Great Danes, Bulldogs, and Boxers with this color pattern. Some Boxers also have a unique condition called black brindle or reverse brindle, in which the coat appears to be black with fawn stripes; in reality, a heavy concentration of black striping covers most of the fawn background on the dog's skin.
Similarly, canines with long, wiry, or curly fur tend to have less prominent brindle markings that make them even more unique. Some variations of this coat color pattern include:
⦁ Blue brindle
⦁ Red brindle
⦁ Liver brindle
⦁ Fawn brindle
⦁ Brown brindle
Did you know?
Jack, the famous dog featured in Laura Ingalls Wilder’s Little House on the Prairie, was a brindle Bulldog.
A brindle and white Pit Bull Terrier mixed breed dog
The Harlequin Coat Pattern
Who hasn’t heard the word “harlequin” these days? I bet that you’re picturing the color pattern in your mind right now.
In this canine coat color pattern, the base background color is pure white, while gray or black torn patches are randomly distributed over the dog's body. Ideally, the black patches must neither be very small (barely visible) nor too large (to such an extent that they start covering large areas and resemble a blanket).
The name of this coat pattern is coined from “Arlecchino,” a famed comic servant character from the Italian Commedia Dell’arte, known for wearing a typical checkered costume.
The harlequin coat pattern is related to the above-mentioned merle pattern. In the harlequin pattern, the blue background (as seen in merle canines) is gone, and there's a white one instead.
The poster child for the harlequin coat pattern is the Great Dane. Some people confuse a young harlequin Great Dane for a full-on Dalmatian. Even though both canine breeds are technically white with black areas, the Dalmatian has white, smooth, and rounded spots, while a harlequin Great Dane has torn patches.
Did you know?
While the traditional harlequin coat pattern consists of black patches on a white background, the patches may also be dilute blue ("blue harlequin" or "bluequin"), brindle ("brindlequin"), or sable ("fawnequin"). How's that for variety?
Great Dane Harlequin
The Ticked Coat Pattern
In this unique coat pattern, the dog has small pigmented spots against a white background.
What's interesting is that this pattern is only to be found on the white parts of the dog's coat. In cases of moderate ticking, most spots are concentrated on the dog's legs and muzzle.
Ticked coats are often found in dogs selectively bred for hunting, such as:
- German Shorthaired Pointer
- German Wirehaired Pointer
- Brittany
- English setters
- English Springer Spaniels
- Bluetick coonhounds
Did you know?
An interesting fact about the ticked coat is that puppies are not born with small spots, but they tend to develop this coat pattern later on as they develop.
German Shorthaired Pointer
The Spotted Coat Pattern
If you’re a fan of 101 Dalmatians, then you probably know that they’re the only spotted breed of dogs in the world. Their rarity is why Cruella de Vil fell in love with them after all! But dog lovers cherish these canines for reasons other than their unique (and stealable!) spotted fur.
The background color of this coat is pure white with spots. These spots are dense black (or even liver brown in some cases). If a dog appears in the show ring with any other color variation, it won’t be allowed to compete. Keep in mind that these spots can range from the size of a dime to the size of a half-dollar.
However, this appealing coat pattern has a dark side. The same genes responsible for the spots may also predispose this breed to deafness due to the extreme piebald pigment genes.
A study by Strain et al. and Holliday et al. in 1992 found that about 30 percent of Dalmatians in the USA suffer from some form of hearing loss, with 8 percent being bilaterally deaf and 22 percent unilaterally deaf.
Did you know?
Dalmatian puppies are born white without any spots showing, but this is just an optical illusion. The spots are actually there, only that they become fully visible to the naked eye once the pups mature and their hairs turn black.
Dalmatian dog
The Roan Coat Pattern
Canines with this particular pattern are often called "ticked" dogs. However, even this wordplay is not devoid of controversy, and some experts suggest that roans are separate from ticking.
Generally, this coat pattern consists of the presence of pigmented hairs within white hairs. As you can see, these hairs of different colors are spaced so close to each other that the mixture looks blue-gray or iron-gray.
Many folks describe Australian Cattle Dogs as being “mottled” or “speckled.” These terms simply refer to different extents of roan and ticking.
Some variations of this canine coat color pattern include:
⦁ Red roan
⦁ Lemon roan
⦁ Liver roan
⦁ Brown roan
⦁ Blue roan (coat with black and white hairs)
Did you know?
As with Dalmatians, Australian Cattle dog puppies are born white, with the ticking and roaning intensifying in the weeks after birth.
Australian Cattle Dog Blue Heeler
Tricolor Coat Pattern
As the name of the coat indicates, this pattern is composed of three distinct hues. Most dogs with this coat pattern are tan, white, and black, but some dogs are blue, liver, and Isabella.
Some popular dog breeds that have a three-hued coat include these beauties:
⦁ Bernese Mountain Dog
⦁ Entlebucher Mountain Dog
⦁ Beagle
⦁ Rat Terrier
⦁ Papillon
⦁ Basenji
Did you know?
Black backs are dogs with a black coat covering most of their body, although occasionally some black-backed dogs will have differently hued bellies or paws. The black back pattern is found in Dachshunds or Bernese mountain dogs.
Bernese mountain dog
Dogs Are More Than Just Looks!
A dog's fascinating coat colors are one of its most distinguishing features; some coat colors are more common, while others are more unusual.
It's important to keep in mind that no matter how impressive a dog's coat color is, you shouldn't choose a dog based on this factor alone.
Unfortunately, many pet owners tend to discriminate based on an animal's coloring. For instance, a survey shows that black felines and canines take four times longer to get adopted simply because people associate this coat color with evil.
When choosing your favorite breed, you should consider other factors, such as health, physical activity, and temperament overall, rather than coat color.
That’s because certain stunning dog coat colors come with a heavy price, i.e., health problems and an elevated risk of ear/skin conditions, especially if two dogs are selectively bred just to produce certain coat color patterns.
Eight basic coat colors and eight coat patterns you'll frequently see in dogs.
References
- American Scientist: Genetics and the Shape of Dogs
- Forbes: Pet Ownership Statistics 2024
- Friends of the Shelter: Why Are Black Dogs and Cats Often the Last to Be Adopted?
- Lindblad-Toh, K., et al. 2005. Genome sequence, comparative analysis and haplotype structure of the domestic dog. Nature'
- Saif, Rashid & Iftikhar, Ali & Asif, Fatima & Alghanem, Suliman. (2020). Dog Coat Colour Genetics: A Review Adv. Life Sci
- The International Animal Welfare Science Society, Genetic Welfare Problems of Companion Animals, Dalmatians
- Brancalion, Lillian & Waud (Haase), Bianca & Mazrier, Hamutal & Willet, Cali & Lindblad‐Toh, K. & Lingaas, F. & Wade, Claire. (2021). Roan, ticked and clear coat patterns in the canine are associated with three haplotypes near usherin on CFA38. Animal Genetics.
- Smithsonian Magazine: Golden Fur in Dogs Evolved Two Million Years Ago, Long Before Domestication
- Letko A, Hédan B, Snell A, Harris AC, Jagannathan V, Andersson G, Holst BS, Ostrander EA, Quignon P, André C, Leeb T. Genomic Diversity and Runs of Homozygosity in Bernese Mountain Dogs. Genes (Basel). 2023
This content is accurate and true to the best of the author’s knowledge and is not meant to substitute for formal and individualized advice from a qualified professional.
© 2024 Adrienne Farricelli CPDT-KA, Dip.CBST
