Understanding the Results

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E locus (Black or Red/Yellow)

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The base coat color for all dogs is either Black or Red/Yellow. Black is dominant over red/yellow and is expressed whenever there is a single E allele. In order for a dog to show its red/yellow color it would require that it has both recessive e/e genes. The e/e genotype prevents all other color genes (examples: merle, agouti, brindling, etc.) from being expressed. In order for us to see other color variations a dog must carry at least one E gene and then it will have a black base coat. A dog can have any of the following E locus combinations:

 

E/E - black dog

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E/e - black dog

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e/e - red/yellow dog

 

You can see from Clancy’s coat color panel that he carries E/e genes. This means that he exhibits a base coat color of black, but has a 50% chance of passing the black E or red/yellow e on any mating. If he is crossed with any red/yellow dog (examples: golden retriever, yellow Labrador, etc.) there is a 50% chance of having red/yellow pups. To date, on all of his crossings with e/e dogs, about 85% of the pups are red/yellow.

 

M Locus (Merle pattern)

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The merle gene is dominant over all other genes (except you won’t see it expressed on red/yellow dogs). Only one copy of an M allele is required for expression of the gene. The merle gene dilutes patches of the black color pigment causing swirls and patterns. It can also affect skin and eye coloring. Dogs with the M allele often have blue coloration in one or both eyes.You never want to cross two merle dogs as they sometimes can result in eye abnormalities and deafness. A dog can have any of the following M locus combinations:

 

M/M - merle markings (may have hearing or vision problems)

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M/m - merle markings

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m/m - no merle markings

 

We did not test Clancy for the M allele as we already knew he carries the M/m based on his and his mom’s coloring. Crossing Clancy with any black base colored dog (E/E or E/e), there is a 50% chance the pups will have merle markings. Merle patterns in poodles is a topic often debated. You can read more about merle pattern controversy in poodles here.

 

K locus (Dominant black)

 

The next gene that determines coat color is the K gene which is referred to as "Dominant Black." The presence or absence of this gene determines if a dog can express "agouti" (tricolored) color patterns (will be discussed later).

The Dominant Black gene consists of three different alleles, or variants. The three types are listed in order of dominance. The first allele, which is the most dominant, is KB, or dominant black. The Dominant Black allele is actually a mutation that does not allow the agouti gene to be expressed. Because this mutation is dominant, a dog only needs to have one copy of the mutation to suppress the agouti locus. A dog that has one or two copies of the Dominant Black allele will only express his base coat color, which is determined by the B-Locus (will be discussed later) and E-Locus. He will not express any colors that occur from the agouti gene, such as "black and tan" or "tricolor."

 

The second allele is for brindling. As Clancy doesn’t carry this gene, it will not be discussed here. The third allele type is Ky. It is the least dominant of the three. This allele allows the agouti gene to be expressed without brindling. When a dog is Ky/Ky at the K-locus, the agouti locus determines the dog's coat color. For example, a dog that is At/At at the agouti locus could be tricolored. If that same dog is KB/KB at the K-locus, the agouti locus will be hidden, and his coloration will be determined at the B- and E- loci. However, if that same dog is Ky/Ky at the K-locus, he will then be able to express agouti, and will be tricolored. A dog can have any of the following combinations:

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KB/KB - agouti not expressed, color will be determined by base coat

 

KB/Kb - agouti not express, color will be determined by base coat

 

KB/Ky - agouti not express, color will be determined by base coat

 

Kb/Kb - agouti will be expressed and dog will have brindling

 

Kb/ky - agouti will be expressed and dog will have brindling

 

Ky/ky - agout will be expressed and dog will either be tricolor or black and tan

 

Clancy’s K locus is KB/KB, thus he shows his base color of black. However he also has merle M so his black is diluted in blotchy pattern. Regardless of the K locus of any dog he is crossed with, 100% of his pups will not be able to express the agouti gene and will have their color determined by the E and B locus.

 

A locus (Fawn, sable, black and tan/tricolor, recessive black)

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The A locus is responsible for a number of common coat patterns in the dog. Expression of all of them requires any combination of two Ky or Kbr alleles at the K locus, and at least one E or EM allele at the E locus. The gene involved is the Agouti gene, and variations in it are responsible for fawn and sable dogs (Ay), wild type (aw), tan points (at), and recessive black(a).

 

The first allele is AW, or the wild-type allele. This appears as a "wolf-grey" type of pattern. It is thought that this is the most dominant allele.The second most dominant allele is AY. It creates fawn or sable pigment.The third most dominant allele is At. This allele is responsible for black and tan or tricolor dogs.The fourth allele is known as "recessive black," or the a-allele. This form of agouti gene causes a dog that does not carry the dominant black gene to be solid black. The recessive black allele is recessive to all other alleles, meaning that the dog must carry two copies of the "a" allele to express this pattern. A dog can have the following A locus combinations:

 

Aw/Aw - wolf grey colored

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Aw/Ay - wolf grey colored

 

Aw/At - wolf grey colored

 

Aw/a - wolf grey colored

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Ay/Ay - Fawn or sable colored

 

Ay/At - Fawn or sable colored

 

Ay/a - Fawn or sable colored

 

At/At - tricolored

 

At/a - tricolored

 

a/a - black colored

 

Clancy’s A locus genotype is At/At. Although he carries this genotype, he does not express it in his coloring because of the genome on the K locus. However, he passes the At gene on to 100% of his pups, but none of his pups will be able to express the At (tricolor) because he also passes KB to 100% of his puts which prohibits the At from being expressed. If a breeder wanted to keep one of his pups for future breeding, they would want to do a coat color test to see if they have any chance of the agouti gene being expressed with the correct mating.

 

B Locus (Black or brown)

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The B gene codes for either Black or brown coloring. This gene dilutes the black pigment to where it appears brown. Black (B) is dominant over brown (b) and thus if a dog has a single copy of the B gene, the dog will be black colored. The following B locus combinations are possible:

 

B/B - black dog, will pass the Black gene 100% of the time

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B/b - black dog, will have a 50/50 chance of throwing either black or brown

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b/b - brown dog, will always pass the brown gene 100% of the time

 

Clancy’s B locus is B/b. He is a black dog, but has a 50/50 chance of passing either B or b to all of his offspring.

 

S Locus (White spotting, parti, piebald)

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The S gene regulates dilution of color pigmentation. When you see dogs with white spots (from small ones to large spots) it is because of the S gene. These alleles have varying dominance. The following combinations are possible:

 

Sn/Sn - no spotting or pigment dilution, dog color will be solid

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Sn/Sp - these are co-dominant, dog will have some spotting, parti, or piebald

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Sp/Sp - major spotting or dilution. Most dogs with this gene combination will be almost entirely white with typical black or brown on the ears and a spot or two near the tail. Also these dogs often have blue coloration in one or both eyes

 

Clancy’s color test reveals he is Sn/Sn. He does not have any spotting and can not pass spotting to any of his offspring. If any of his pups end up with spots, it is because the female was carrying the Sp gene.

 

Cu Locus (Curly, wavy, or straight hair)

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Curly coats are dominant over straight coats. Thus if a dog has a single gene for curl the dog will either have curly or wavy hair. The possible combination for curl are:

 

CuC/CuC - dog has tight curl and will pass curl on to 100% of its offspring

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CuC/Cuc - dog has some curl or wave to its hair and has a 50% chance of passing curl to its offspring

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Cuc/Cuc - dog has straight hair and will always pass the straight gene to its offspring

 

Clancy’s panel show that he is CuC/CuC. He has very tight curl and passes this on to all of his offspring regardless of what he is mated with.

 

L locus (Hair length)

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Hair length is determined by the L locus. Short hair is dominant to long hair and is represented with the L allele. An interesting thing about hair length is that a dog can have medium length hair with a combination of alleles. The possible combinations for coat length are:

 

L/L - dog has short hair

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L/l - dog can have short or medium length hair

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l/l - dog will have long hair

 

Clancy’s L genotype is l/l for long hair. He will pass the long hair gene on to 100% of his offspring.

 

F Locus (Furnishings)

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Furnishings are when the dog has longer hair around the muzzle and on the eyebrows. This is ideal in poodles and poodle crosses as people generally think they look better. A mutation in the gene suppresses the growth of hair in these locations. The following combinations are possible:

 

F/F - dog is fully furnished and will have longer muzzle and eyebrow hair

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F/IC - the dog has furnishings but has a 50% chance of passing on the mutation which will prevent furnishings

 

IC/IC - the dog does not have furnishings and will always pass on the IC to all of its offspring

 

Clancy is F/F. He is fully furnished and passes the furnishings on to 100% of his pups.