Coat Colors and Varieties
There are two coat varieties and four coat colors in Collies.
Coat Varieties:
Rough Coat- An outer coat that is straight and harsh to the touch, and an undercoat that is soft and furry. It is abundant except on the head and legs.
Smooth Coat- A short, hard, dense, flat coat with an abundance of undercoat.
Coat Inheritance:
Rough coated Collies inherit their coat-factoring from their rough ancestors, and smooth coated Collies inherit their coat-factoring from their smooth ancestors. It is often said that a rough Collie from a rough/smooth breeding will have a shorter coat because of having a smooth parent, or that a smooth Collie from a rough/smooth breeding will have a longer coat because of having a rough parent. This is NOT TRUE!!
In order to produce a smooth, you must have at least one parent that is smooth. Two smooths can produce rough puppies if they are both rough-factored, but two roughs cannot produce smooth puppies.
Coat Colors:
Sable and White- Predominantly sable (from light gold to dark mahogany) with white markings usually on the chest, neck, legs, feet, and tip of tail.
Tri-Color- Predominantly black with white markings as in the sable and white and tan shadings on and about the head and legs.
Blue Merle- A mottled or marbled color, predominantly blue-grey and black with white markings as in the sable and white and usually tan shadings as in the tri-color.
White- Predominantly white with sable, tri-color, or blue merle markings on the head and body.
Color Inheritance:
Sable- Dominant over tri-color. Shadings from light gold to dark mahogany.
Pure For Sable- Usually a light shade of sable. These individuals carry no tri-color gene and can produce only sable color regardless of what color is combined with them.
Tri-factored Sable- Sables carrying the tri-color gene in conjunction with the dominant sable gene. Usually a darker shade of sable.
Tri-Color- Recessive to sable. Black with white and tan markings.
Merle- Dominant dilution gene which in combination with sable or tri-color genes produces merled Collies.
Blue Merle- Blue-grey with black splotching and white and tan markings. Color results from the interaction of the dominant dilution gene with the tri-color gene.
Sable Merle- Sable spotted Collies. Color results from the interaction of the dominant dilution gene on the sable color. At birth, they exhibit a bluish tinge on the tail and muzzle which disappears in a few weeks. Brownish merling may or may not remain at maturity. Many sable merles inherit blue or blue flecked eyes.
Pure For Sable Merle- Usually a light or "washed out" sable at birth with brown merling. These individuals carry no tri-color gene.
Tri-factored Sable Merle- Usually a darker shade of sable with brown merling at birth. The tri-color gene is present in conjunction with the sable and merle gene.
White- The result of a cross between two white parents and/or white-factored parents. Color is carried on a recessive gene and is inherited independently of sable, tri-color, or blue merle and may occur in combination with any of them. These are not to be confused with the white merle whose "white" color results from the double dominant dilution merle gene, whereas the "white" color of a color-headed white results from the recessive gene.
White-factored- Colored Collies usually with large white frill, heavy white tail tip, possibly a body splash of white hairs, and white extending upward from the hind feet over the stifle to meet the white underbody. These individuals carry the recessive white factor.
Non White-factored- Regular colored Collies not carrying the recessive white factor.
White Merle- Defective whites, resulting from the combination of two merled parents. These Collies inherit the dominant dilution gene from both parents. Thus, color is diminished almost to the vanishing point by the gene in duplex. They are almost white in appearance and may or may not have a few merling spots. Eyes, if present, are pale blue. Skin, including the eyelids, lips, nose, and pads are pigmentless except within an area of merling. Hearing and sight are usually impaired.