Black & Tan

[Jan/Billy]

My Billy is Black and Tan (He is in the gallery). I have always wondered why there are so few black and tan cockers around.  Many people stop me in the park and say they have never seen of heard of a cocker spaniel this colour. Anyone know why there are so few? I have been on the internet and his markings are consistent with the breed standard although i can only find black and tan cockers on american sites.Why is this? :?  Does Billy perhaps have some american cocker in him?                    

[Mike]

Black and tans arent as uncommon as you might think Jan, and nothing to do with American cockers (after all American cockers originated from English cockers) The tan gene is recessive so both parents need to carry it for the offspring to have the tan gene. Colour genetics is not for the faint-hearted, but to get you started off, it might help to read this previous thread:

http://www.cockersonline.co.uk/forum/viewt...p?t=482&start=0

Enjoy, take your time, and it's not as complicated as it looks or sounds  :wink:                    

[Dunton4]

Hi Jan,

Billy is gorgeous!  You are so lucky!

Although my Tilly is jet black, her mum and her litter sister are both black and tan.  I think (and I'm sure someone more experienced will correct me if I'm wrong) that the tan is a recessive gene in some solid colours and so is subject to the usual statistical rules of genetics.  Also, I think you can only tell if a dog carries the tan gene by breeding from them - which may also explain their rarity!  I think the genetics of colour in the cocker spaniel is a fascinating subject.  Tilly's dad was golden, so in her litter there was a lovely mixture of  2 black, 2 golden and  1 black and tan puppy.

I have seen a few black and tan cockers doing well in the show-ring (including Tilly's lovely sister).

I think the black and tans are gorgeous and I am sure you will enjoy many happy years with the cuddly Billy!

Sue                    

[Jan/Billy]

Thanks both. Yeah Billy is cute we love him to bits. I am always kissing him, he loves the attention    There are a few cockers around here but i have not seen one blackand tan.But now i understand the whole genetic/colouring thing better. Cheers!                    

[Sam n Riley]

There is a 13 week old puppy at our training class called Oscar who is the most beautiful black and tan, I must admit he is the first one I have actually seen around here - georgeous!                    

[Loraine]

Candy's mum is black and tan too but she was mated with a solid black and therefore all the puppies were black.                    

[*-Nikki-*]

Yeah...black and tans aren't as uncommon as you think. I know what you mean though! :wink:  We have an adorable black and tan bitch (who is very well marked) and when we are out and about, lots of people stop us and ask what colour she is...and many say that they have never seen a black & Tan before.                    

[Kim]

I have 2 black & tans, 1 of which you can see in the "solid" gallery.                    

[*-Nikki-*]

Although my Tilly is jet black, her mum and her litter sister are both black and tan. Tilly's dad was golden, so in her litter there was a lovely mixture of 2 black, 2 golden and 1 black and tan puppy.

Out of our two solid lines...one carries the black & Tan gene and one does not. Its all to do with what lines you have. :wink:  Some have the old English lines (with black and tan included) and some do not. Our Jimmison bitch carries the black and tan gene...out of her first litter she had 2 black and tans and 2 blacks (dog and bitch of each colour.) Then her daughter (who is a black and tan) had 3 pups in her first litter, 1 black & tan and 2 blacks (all bitches.) Whereas our Charbonnel bitches line doesn't contain the black&Tan gene                      

[Jan/Billy]

Kim your black and tans are just stunning  
Billy's photos in the gallery are from when he was very young (8 weeks). He has grown a lot since! That long hair on those ears look hard work!!
 :roll:
Not sure if you would have read my other threads but we bought billy from a retail outlet (We know now this was a BIG mistake) and have always been concerned that he may have come from a puppy farmer. The breeder on his kC reg has not had many litters and doesnt appear to be over breeding which is reasuring, However on his kc paperwork it does say Billy is Black when he is of course black and tan. Should I be worried? Is there anyway of testing bIlly' DNA to ensure he is the litter of the bitch? Will KC have the Bitch DNA details??  
He has had no tests done on him as a puppy eyes hip etc. Is it too late? Its just to reassure me that he is in good health. Will the vet do this? :?                    

[Kim]

Hopefully it's just a case of giving you a brother's registration document, in which case it's not too much of a problem if you are not breeding or showing, I'm not sure about DNA testing tho.

It's not the pups that have the hip/eye tests, it's the parents.

Thankyou for you kind words about my dogs.                      

[Jane S]

Hi Jan

The only way you could DNA test Billy would be if you had DNA samples of both his parents which is not going to be feasible in view of where Billy came from The KC have started a DNA profiling program with the Animal Health Trust but it will be purely voluntary unless the breeder is a member of the new Accredited Breeder Scheme when it will be compulsory from next year. I'm afraid you have no way of knowing whether Billy has come from the parents listed on his registration document nor how many litters his breeder has actually had - they could alternate KC registration with DLRC registration for example or not register some of their litters. Try not to worry too much - if your vet has given Billy a clean bill of health, then I'm sure he is fine. If you wanted to have him hip-scored & eye tested later on, then you could do that but he would need to be over 12 months old.

Jane                    

[ziggy]

i saw a black and tan at crufts,i was green with envy,what a lovely looking dog, i took a picture,lucky you  :wink:                    

[Kim]

Regardless of his breeding & where you got him from, your Billy looks lovely.
I have a real soft spot for b/t's                    

[ziggy]

ditto kim :wink: