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ForumsGerman Shepherd Dog > ... gray GSD? (30 replies)
... gray GSD? by lckyglstar05 on 25 June 2009 - 06:39 |
| My female german shepherd is a little more than a year old. She is a purebred, was acquired from a breeder, and we met both her parents. Her father is a long-haired gsd, and her mother is a short-haired gsd. As a puppy, she had blue eyes, which we thought was odd, but didn't think much of it and thought she would grow out of it, which she did.  But now she has hazel eyes and a greyish kind of coat, with an overwhelmingly large amount of white down the center of her back:   The vet has never said anything about her coat color, so we thought we were just being paranoid. We keep having people ask us what kind of dog she is, then follows up with "oh, is she a gsd mix?" She's not. Finally a couple of days ago, a 7 month old puppy started coming to the park, and that's when we really saw the difference between the two. The other puppy is black. Ours is grey. My dog is 64 pounds, eating every day, pooping twice a day, and has a lot of energy. She's always running around and in an active mood, so we don't believe she's sick. Is there an explanation for this? |
by Rik on 25 June 2009 - 12:59 |
| The stripe down the back is most often refereed to as a "bitch stripe" and is very common (just varying degrees) on female GSD. Your dog's stripe is just larger than a lot that you will see. To me, it looks like your dog just didn't pull very deep color from her genetic background. Rik |
by Mystere on 25 June 2009 - 14:05 |
| The bitch seems perfectly "normal." The "bitch stripe" is often seen in show line bitches. Rik is correct, hers is just wider than what is usually seen. It sounds like she simply has light eyes--also frequently seen and not a problem. Some gsds just have deeper, richer colors than others. :-) Enjoy your bitch--she's the only unconditional love and loyalty you can buy. :-) |
Mystere by VonIsengard on 25 June 2009 - 15:35 |
| Well, of course the puppy is black, look at your girl, she was too as a pup. "People" are not educated on the GSD. I have been asked if my dogs are purebred, also because of their bitch stripe, because they are red, or because they are "too small" (my oldest is 75 lbs!). Your girl does not have great pigment, so what. Otherwise she looks like a perfectly nice, sound pet, and she is certainly a purebred GSD. |
VonIsengard by jbaker1980 on 25 June 2009 - 16:47 |
| ya, when I walk my sable bitch you can hear people saying "look he's got one of those wolf dogs" |
jbaker1980 by Mystere on 25 June 2009 - 19:19 |
I get the same with my male. He is a beautiful sable, with a magnificent head. The query is always, |
by EuroShepherd on 25 June 2009 - 22:53 |
| The "white" down her back is a normal "bitch stripe" and no need for concern over that, it's quite common and not faulted nor caused by any health issues. However, as for her being "gray" with hazel eyes....I think you probably have a blue and tan GSD, not a black and tan. perhaps your breeder didn't know very much about the dogs they were breeding and that could be the reason why they didn't tell you, though I have seen ads by breeders who I'm certain knew they had blue pups or blue dogs and were not disclosing that in their advertising. Blue is a dilute of Black, it is heavily faulted in the show ring. Some blues can have coat and skin problems but not all of them do. It's simply a recessive gene that does show up in GSDs and can be carried by parents who have normal black color. Blues come in different shades, some are so dark you wouldn't know they weren't black unless you put them right up next to a true black. Hope this helps. |
EuroShepherd by lckyglstar05 on 26 June 2009 - 20:14 |
| Thanks for the info. I was worried that she might have a vitamin deficiency or something. |
by killarneyhausgsds on 27 June 2009 - 18:04 |
Normal stripe although she looks a little blue to me. I have a Solid Black and always get the same question; I didn't know a Lab's ears stood up!!! She is a lab right? I've never seen a Black Shepherds she must be mixed with something. It gets old but each dog is different coloring, markings, and personality. Leah |
killarneyhausgsds by windwalker18 on 28 June 2009 - 06:45 |
| As one ole man explained to me at GREAT Lengths.... German Shepherds are Black and tan (bl/red, bl/cream) Alsations are the ones who have longer fur on their neck and tail Black ones are Belgians White ones are Artic Wolf cross... Police dogs are the ones like Rin-tin-tin (Bl/silver) The realy long haired ones are Tervueren's He has saved me SO much confusion in my years in GSD's I really should thank him for clearing it all up so easily! |
windwalker18 by Alexis on 30 June 2009 - 00:54 |
| Just curious, what type of food are you feeding your dog? |
by Blkimes on 15 October 2009 - 02:27 |
| It is simply another color variation! It is rare and amazing!!! You got a blue diamond here!! Because of their rarity and the fact that they are still recognized by AKC, I have known some breeders who have charged a LOT more for the blue and liver GSD's! You are VERY lucky!!! Your dog is beautiful!!! Look at this: http://www.bluedogs.8m.com/faqs.html |
by VomMarischal on 15 October 2009 - 03:01 |
| They don't think my big bitch is "purebread" either. I usually get asked if she has pit bull in her. She is different looking, I have to admit...90 lbs. of very old-lines pedigree GSD! Alita von der Obstgarten  |
by VomRuiz on 15 October 2009 - 03:40 |
| Vom Marischal, Lovely Dog! My showline female also has the bitch stripe. She was a gift and I don't know a lot about the showlines, but I'm pretty sure my girl wouldn't win any ribbons, due to her fine bone structure, color and conformation... :-) We're going to do sports instead. Besides "I" think she's cute... Oh, I also get the "Is he purebred?!" About my male because he is sable, 2 years old and only weighs 60# This is my bitch   Stacy |
VomRuiz by VomRuiz on 15 October 2009 - 03:43 |
P.S. This is how much their color changes... This was her at about Oh, 3 or so months old. Bad stack I was just using the picture to inquire about her weak pasterns |
by crhuerta on 15 October 2009 - 04:09 |
| I can't even find the strength to comment on the post regarding the "rarity" and "diamond color" issue......... However;......your female looks to me to be a pure bred GSD. She has a wide "bitch" stripe down the center of her back. Her coat & eye color are a result of her not having a strong pigment gene.....which is genetically passed to offspring. These would be considered "breeding faults" to MOST GSD breeders....since it is considered such in the GSD standard. Otherwise, she looks like a wonderful, happy companion! You are blessed! This breed is wonderful, hug & kiss the ones in your life! jmo, Robin |
by Csense on 15 October 2009 - 10:40 |
| She is a blue and tan GSD (unusual, not rare.) And she looks in good condition to me:) She shouldn't be bred from as blue is a fault. The bitch strip is normal. Is her pedigree on the database if so could you post it please. |
by Trotters123 on 15 October 2009 - 11:02 |
| She is most definately a blue & tan but to be more precise she is a 'powder blue' The blues range from Midnight right through to Powder. The midnight looks black until you put them up against a black then you really notice the difference. Blues always have brown/hazel or yellow eyes and a very, very dark grey nose. This is considered a fault but only on the colour side. If she is healthy and happy who cares what colour she is, just enjoy her and get a private giggle about the ignorant when they make a stupid comment! Good luck with her. |
by Trotters123 on 15 October 2009 - 11:06 |
| PS I forgot to say. Blue is NOT RARE.......I have seen adverts in the UK from breeders who put 'rare blue'! HAH! What a con this is on the poor unsuspecting public. It is a ploy to get more money for something which, in the UK and the KC breed standard is considered a fault and should not be bred from. Some lines carry the Blue gene, just the same as some lines carry the long coat gene. Rare??? poohey! Once again though, enjoy your girl as I am sure she will bring your hours and hours of pleasure |
by Falcon12 on 15 October 2009 - 12:14 |
| Vom Marischal, Awesome head on that one! |
Falcon12
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