![]() Black is the favorite coat color for hunting.Their popularity was driven by two reasons: When Retrievers were first bred, black coated dogs were the only pups deemed acceptable. Even today, nearly half of all Labs are black! The black Labrador Retriever was historically the most common coat color. John’s water dogs had lots of white in their coat. This interruption in their solid black coat is due to genetic traces left from their late ancestor, the St. But, some have one or two white spots on their fur. Other breeders skip this expensive step and just opt for a beautiful surprise of puppies who can pretty much be any color possible! Genotype This dilution can also occur in yellow to produce champagne or in black to produce charcoal Labs.īreeders often perform genetic tests on their breeding stock to accurately predict the possible Lab colors their puppies could be. However, a chocolate Lab with dd would have a color that looks like a diluted chocolate. When you mix Labradors with other dog breeds, things get even more complicated!Īnother complicated part of their genetics is the idea of dilute genes! The D genes can either be big D, which is a dominant gene and results in a non-diluted coat, while little d is a recessive gene that results in a diluted color.Ī chocolate Lab with DD genes would be chocolate. Two chocolate Labradors can have chocolate or yellow pups.Ī pair of black Labs can have black, yellow or chocolate puppies. Dogs with EEBB, EeBB, EeBb or EEBb genes will be black.īreeding two yellow Labs will always result in yellow puppies.Labradors with EE or Ee in their genome will be either black or chocolate (depending on their B genes), but dogs with ee in their genome will have a yellow coat: This masking results in a yellow coat, rather than a black or chocolate coat. ![]() The little e gene is recessive and masks the B gene. The big E gene is dominant and does not interfere with the B genes. E genes will determine if the B genes are expressed or not. ![]() Just like the B genes, there are two genes at this locus, one from each parent. Yellow Lab coats are determined by the E gene. A Lab with BB or Bb will have a black coat while a dog with bb in their genome will have a chocolate coat. The little b, the recessive gene, codes for low amounts of eumelanin and results in a chocolate coat.ĭogs inherit two B genes, one from each parent. The big B, the dominant gene, codes for high amounts of eumelanin and results in a black coat. Whether a dog produces a lot or a little eumelanin all depends on their B genes. A dog that produces lots of eumelanin will end up a black dog, while a dog that produces small amounts of eumelanin will be chocolate. Eumelanin determines what shade their coat will be. The science behind coat color is complicated and a result of various genes.īlack and chocolate Labs have a pigment in their fur called eumelanin. However, as Labs have risen in popularity, other colors such as silver, charcoal and red have become recognized too. These colors are black, yellow and chocolate. It is not my intention to judge anyone and of course everyone is entitled to their own views and opinions.īut, I would say that if you are looking for a Labrador please ensure you visit a reputable breeder and beware of people in classified ads who are offering to sell blue Labs or any other shade of Labrador including white (actually yellow) or gold (likely to be a Golden Retriever / Labrador mix).According to the American Kennel Club, there are only three colors of Labrador Retriever. Like many things, the concept of a silver or blue Lab is just a fad pandering to the whims of people who want something 'different' or 'unusual'. But these dogs are either very light coloured chocolate Labs whose genes have been diluted or are the result of cross breeding - usually with a Weimeraner There are breeders of so called silver Labradors. We explain in-depth about this on our Labrador Retriever Colours page. Officially, and in the opinion of myself and most people who love Labs, there are only three coat colours - yellow, black and chocolate.
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