Colouring

[tinstaafl]

I've been reading up on how colours are passed from generation to generation. However, the only cocker book I have that discusses this subject is a little short on detail of how roan colours are created.

I understand most of the solids rules and it describes how an Orange Roan mated to a black and white will produce dark blue roan. However, since dark blue roan is the dominant colour there must be other ways it is created. Oddly, the book doesn't describe what happens when a blue roan is mated to a blue roan. Am I correct that, assuming there are no other genes involved, a litter of blue roans will be produced?

Fascinating stuff

Simon

[Jane S]

Sorry but orange roan to a black & white won't necessarily produce any dark blue roans - it depends on whether the orange roan carries for black & white (in which case black & white pups can be produced) and whether the orange roan is a light roan or not (a light roan to a black & white won't necessarily produce any dark roans). Also it's possible other colours could be produced if for example both parents carry the liver gene or the gene for "and tan" markings.

Yes you are right that if a blue roan is mated to a blue roan and neither carry any other colour genes as recessives then all the resulting puppies will be blue roan.

Out of interest which Cocker book are you looking at? Some are a bit dated now and you might be better off searching the Genetics/Breeding board for other threads where people have posted links to websites which cover Cocker colour inheritance, like THIS ONE

[AnnieM]

Sorry to butt in on the thread, but can anyone recommend a decent book on genetics, (with regards to dogs, obviously) I have looked at quite a few on Amazon, but they are very expensive and I don't want to go and spend that sort of money on something that is not right, or out of date.
Thanks, will keep quiet now. 

[tinstaafl]

Hey Jane, I have the Collins book that doesn't go into colouring and a hardback PetLove (Interpet) book by van Wessam. Thanks for the pointer to the thread. I haven't explored this part of the forum yet!

What's the difference between a dark blue roan and a light blue roan then?

Simon

[Jane S]

Sorry to butt in on the thread, but can anyone recommend a decent book on genetics, (with regards to dogs, obviously) I have looked at quite a few on Amazon, but they are very expensive and I don't want to go and spend that sort of money on something that is not right, or out of date.

That's the trouble Annie - decent genetics books don't come cheap but you can sometimes pick up a bargain with second hand copies on Ebay or second hand book shops. Even the good ones are out of date though as most were printed at least 10 years ago. The best ones IMO are :-

Malcolm Willis "Genetics of The Dog"
Robinson "Genetics For Dog Breeders"

I like the look of the new book by Jeff Sampson but at nearly £100, it's a bit too pricey for me at the moment too

... I have the Collins book that doesn't go into colouring and a hardback PetLove (Interpet) book by van Wessam.

What's the difference between a dark blue roan and a light blue roan then?

I don't have the Petlove book so not sure how detailed the info on colours is or how accurate.

You can see an illustration of a dark blue and a light blue HERE. If you have time, you might find reading the whole of the Colours section on that site quite interesting