Copy of the below post outlines the ONLY way "'rare' colours that are NOT in the breed standard Occur
It is a crossbreed
It is a crossbreed
Merle Colouring in Bulldogs will not be registered
ANKC (Australian National Kennel Club) the only dog register that is recognised with overseas affiliated breed registers. All others within Australia are NOT recognised.
ANKC has never allowed the registration of Merle for British Bulldogs. The UK kennel club has recently ensured and justified why they do NOT allow these colours on the Purebred register. Simple interpretation; it is not genetically possible for a purebred British bulldog to produce Merle Colouring.
Dr Tom Lewis, Genetics & Research Manager at the Kennel Club, added: “The causal merle variant is dominant, so shows itself whenever it is present – even as a single copy. Therefore, in most breeds, we know it cannot have been present ‘under the radar’, as can be the case for some recessive variants. As a result, merle cannot suddenly ‘emerge’ in a breed after many years. This is why the Kennel Club is able to take this position in relation to merle as the situation is relatively straightforward, unlike in the vast majority of other colours.”
Merle patterning – patches of lighter colour appearing in the coat – is the result of the M gene in the dog. There are two variants of this gene: M (merle) and m (non-merle), with merle (M) being dominant to non-merle (m). In some breeds, the effect of the merle allele (M) is termed ‘dapple’. Unfortunately, the effects of the merle allele (M) are not confined to coat patterning and it is known that there can be an increased risk of impaired hearing and sight associated with it, particularly in dogs that are homozygous for M (dogs that carry two copies of the M allele).
ANKC has never allowed the registration of Merle for British Bulldogs. The UK kennel club has recently ensured and justified why they do NOT allow these colours on the Purebred register. Simple interpretation; it is not genetically possible for a purebred British bulldog to produce Merle Colouring.
Dr Tom Lewis, Genetics & Research Manager at the Kennel Club, added: “The causal merle variant is dominant, so shows itself whenever it is present – even as a single copy. Therefore, in most breeds, we know it cannot have been present ‘under the radar’, as can be the case for some recessive variants. As a result, merle cannot suddenly ‘emerge’ in a breed after many years. This is why the Kennel Club is able to take this position in relation to merle as the situation is relatively straightforward, unlike in the vast majority of other colours.”
Merle patterning – patches of lighter colour appearing in the coat – is the result of the M gene in the dog. There are two variants of this gene: M (merle) and m (non-merle), with merle (M) being dominant to non-merle (m). In some breeds, the effect of the merle allele (M) is termed ‘dapple’. Unfortunately, the effects of the merle allele (M) are not confined to coat patterning and it is known that there can be an increased risk of impaired hearing and sight associated with it, particularly in dogs that are homozygous for M (dogs that carry two copies of the M allele).
There is a lot of controversy surrounding “rare” (incorrect coloured) bulldogs. There has been quite an amount of researched conducted on incorrect coloured dogs, not just bulldogs and related health problems. The research conclusively concludes that incorrect coloured dogs are closely link to health issue; see the scientific research for merle coat colour below
Description:
The merle coat colour is a mutation in the dog SILV gene characterized by patches of dilute pigment in combination with areas of full pigmentation. If the basic colour of the dog is black, the effect of the merle gene is a soft gray, often referred to as “blue”. If the basic colour of the dog is red, the effect of the merle gene is a pale red. The merle coat pattern is characteristic of a number of breeds.
Unfortunately there are some health problems associated with the Merle gene. Both heterozygous merle (Mm) and homozygous double merle (MM) dogs may exhibit auditory and ophthalmic abnormalities including mild to severe deafness, increased intraocular pressure, ametropia, microphthalmia and colobomas. The double merle genotype may also be associated with abnormalities of skeletal, cardiac and reproductive systems.
The other research that has been conducted into "rare coloured Bulldogs" The Merles is NOT a purebred, the colour has been gained by crossing generally a Great Dane, when these dogs mature they will not look like Bulldogs as they are not a pure breed.
Description:
The merle coat colour is a mutation in the dog SILV gene characterized by patches of dilute pigment in combination with areas of full pigmentation. If the basic colour of the dog is black, the effect of the merle gene is a soft gray, often referred to as “blue”. If the basic colour of the dog is red, the effect of the merle gene is a pale red. The merle coat pattern is characteristic of a number of breeds.
Unfortunately there are some health problems associated with the Merle gene. Both heterozygous merle (Mm) and homozygous double merle (MM) dogs may exhibit auditory and ophthalmic abnormalities including mild to severe deafness, increased intraocular pressure, ametropia, microphthalmia and colobomas. The double merle genotype may also be associated with abnormalities of skeletal, cardiac and reproductive systems.
The other research that has been conducted into "rare coloured Bulldogs" The Merles is NOT a purebred, the colour has been gained by crossing generally a Great Dane, when these dogs mature they will not look like Bulldogs as they are not a pure breed.
