There probably isn’t one person that doesn’t know how Doberman Pinschers look like. Erect, cut ears, lean body, and a shiny black coat with rust markings. But have you ever seen a solid black Doberman?
No, the black Doberman looks mystic and elegant, but are they really completely black? Sadly no. At first glance, they seem completely black, but when you take a closer look, you’ll probably find some rust-colored markings.
But, that doesn’t take away from their beauty. These dogs are still very rare and will turn heads wherever you take them. Of course, we have to stress that these dogs don’t fit the breed standards. This also means they aren’t accepted by the American Kennel Club.
While you’re already here, learn more about other all-black dogs:
- Black Pomeranian: What To Know
- Black Pitbull: Elegant And Fierce
- All Black German Shepherd: Why They Are Special
- Black German Shorthaired Pointer
- Black Shih Tzu: The most wanted color
- All Black Poodle: The Mystical Beauty
Black Doberman – What to know about them
The black Doberman is rare, there is no doubt in that, but we don’t really know how rare they are. As mentioned, they aren’t accepted by the AKC, so there is no record of how many there are.
What is sure is that you probably won’t find them in a shelter. In addition to that, if you want to buy a black Doberman, then be careful. In a litter, there will usually be just one black puppy. If you see more than just one black Doberman in a litter, it’s very likely it’s due to inbreeding, or that the puppies aren’t purebred Dobermans.
We also have to stress that even if a Doberman looks completely black, usually they’ll have some other colored markings on their bodies. Even if the markings are minimal, you can’t say that the dog is all-black.
Usually, black dogs will have a black coat but with markings that can be so dark that they aren’t even visible at first glance. When you take a closer look you might notice markings above their eyes, on the muzzle, throat, chest, legs, feet, and even below their tail.
Where the black color comes from
Now, when breeding dogs the breeder can’t know what color the puppies will be. That’s why many breeders turn to inbreeding when they want a litter of puppies with a rare coat color.
Dogs come in many sizes and colors. From white to black, over the red, grey, fawn, liver, you name it! But, did you know that all of those colors are a result of only two pigments! Coat color depends on two pigments:
- eumelanin , which is black pigment
- phaeomelanin, which is red pigment
Now, you might wonder, if there are only two pigments, how come there are so many different coat colors. It has to do with genetics and genes! This topic is broad, and there is so much to say about it. But, we’ll try to keep it simple.
Basically, genes can modify those two pigments. For example, there is the dilution gene, which like its name suggests dilutes either the black or red pigment. This gene is recessive. It means that both parents have to carry that gene, for the puppies to inherit it and that their coat color gets diluted. For example, if a puppy inherits the black pigment, and both its parents carry the dilution gene, the puppy’s black coat color can actually turn into brown, grey, pale brown, and so on.
There is another gene that controls the intensity of the red pigment.
But, where does the white color come from? Well, if cells don’t produce any pigment, the coat will be white.
Conclusion
The Black Doberman looks beautiful, but there is a lot of controversy around them too. People argue about this topic daily, basically, the gist of it is the question of breeding all-black dogs are even ethical
There are people who are for it or aren’t opposed to the idea of breeding all-black Dobermans. They say that there isn’t enough evidence that connects the black coat with any health issues. Some even say that all-black dogs are in general much healthier. Which is true to some extend. There are many studies that prove that dogs with light coat colors, like white, are more prone to have different health issues. They are even more prone to being deaf and blind and have alopecia.
Then, we also have people who are completely opposed and say that it’s unethical to breed all-black Dobermans. The main reason is that inbreeding is associated with health and temperament problems.
Now, it’s all up to you to decide what is right or wrong. But we just want to say that the most important thing when getting a dog is that you’re getting a healthy puppy.