Bearded Collies are born in four main colors (with or without white markings): Black, brown, blue (dilute black), and fawn (dilute brown). When all four coat colors show up in the same litter, it’s often called a “rainbow litter.”

As individuals, however, each color has a story. The predominant color in the breed is black, and most puppies are born black. Most also have the gene(s) that causes their coat to fade to “slate.” A Beardie who doesn’t express the fading gene – a true “stay black,”  is pretty rare.  A black Beardie who expresses the dilution gene is known as a “blue.”

A dilute brown is regarded a fawn, but a fawn puppy is more taupe-colored. A Beardie who will remain brown doesn’t express the fading gene.

When white markings appear on a Beardie’s coat on his or her chest, neck, face, belly, tail tip and/or belly, s/he is often said to have an “Irish pattern.” Sometimes a Beardie will have tan markings on his or her coat, usually near the tail, on the cheeks or legs, as well as eyebrows, This is a dog who is expressing the tricolor gene, though as the puppy matures, the tan markings  often fade along with the rest of the coat.

There are some comprehensive articles on the subject of color in this breed. Interested readers will want to check the marvelous article by Carol Gold here, and for more “nerdy” fans of the subject, an abstract entitled, “Genetic analysis of the bearded collie breed: a causal mutation of coat color genes and the dopamine receptor gene DRD4″ can be read here. Finally, some truly terrific comparative pictures of maturing Beardies can be seen at Diane Wynen’s website here (she’s also a talented artist whose work you’ll see accompanying various posts on our website, including this one).

Image: “Chase in the Snow” by Diane Wynen (prints available)
http://wyndianart.com
https://www.facebook.com/wyndianart/