Most fanciers agree that Bolonki should not be white, but otherwise an interesting video.

Bolonka colors are incredibly deceptive because what you see is not what you get. This post is not an attempt to go into color genetics, it is just a friendly post to explain why your Bolonka puppy is changing colors!

We try hard to determine what color each puppy will be as an adult but sometimes that is nearly impossible. There are certain base colors that we can determine, but how each individual puppy develops as an adult is not known. And what makes matters worse is that 2 puppies that look alike may end up being totally different as adults. 

The breed club (AKC) standard reads: ​"All colors are permitted except solid white, spotted, parti-color or merle. Small white markings on the toes and forechest are permitted. A solid white, spotted, parti-color or merle coat color is a disqualification."

The term Havanna Brown is NOT official terminology for the Bolonka, it is a name that we borrowed from the Havanese breed to describe this particular color pattern. When looking at AKC papers the color BROWN is used to depict a chocolate colored dog, not a "brown" colored dog. 

Keep in mind that the AKC puppy registration paper does not list all the variations of color possible. When registering a Bolonka puppy your color choices are: Black, Brown, Cream, Fawn, Gray, Red, Silver, Wolfgray, so if your puppy is what we call Havana Brown or Tobacco your puppy will most likely be registered as black, even though as an adult your dog will not be solid black. No matter the color of your puppy, when you register with AKC you can only choose 1 color, so you have to attempt to "name that color"! Hence why many Bolonki that are registered are listed as the wrong color, the dogs that are imported from overseas often have incorrect color labels due to language barriers and differences of color meaning. In Russia a dog can be registered as "brown" because in Russia it is "brown" but here in USA we would call it a fawn, or it may even be a chocolate brown.  Genetics are swell ...... are we having fun yet?

Most of our bloodlines carry the sable and/or the tan point gene, which can really reek havoc when determining the final color outcome. Sable and tan point genes have the ability to skew what would normally be considered a solid colored dog. The puppies carrying these genes can be born a solid color but they may not stay solid! 

The photos below are of the same puppy. The 1st photo shows what appears to be a black puppy (4 weeks old). The 2nd photo shows what looks like a black puppy with sun bleached hair (10 weeks old). The 3rd photo was taken the very same hour as the 2nd photo, it is in fact the same puppy. The 3rd photo shows the color change that is occurring, this is what we call a Havana Brown color/pattern. We do not know what color this puppy will be as an adult, but it will be fun to watch the color changes as she grows into an adult! 

Here is where it gets tricky, do you register this puppy as black? Well she did look black, but now she doesn't. Is she a brown? No, brown pertains to what we might call chocolate, and brown dogs ALWAYS have brown noses and foot pads with lighter colored eyes. This puppy clearly has a black nose and dark eyes so brown is not her color. Is she a fawn? Right now she is not fawn but possibly when she is 2-3 years old she might be fawn colored like her sire, or she may possibly be a fawn sable. Fawns do have black noses and footpads with dark eyes so that fits. This puppy could even turn a silvery gray color when she is older! 

Here is a link to an incredibly informative website that details the particulars of the Havana Brown coloring, it includes some interesting photos as well.     havaneseabc.com/gallery8.html

This article has been shared from the Embark website. www.embarkvet.com 
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Dog fanciers are passionate about their breeds and the unique attributes that define breed type, characteristics, and temperament. Generations of careful breeding and selection have helped to refine these breed-specific traits and allow everyone to enjoy the remarkable variation that is represented in hundreds of purebred dog breeds.

At Embark, we celebrate and support the dog breeders who have worked passionately to produce exceptional dogs. We share their mission and appreciate the opportunity to contribute our expertise in genetic health risks to this important pursuit.

What is a reference panel?
​We understand it can be concerning when a purebred dog is tested using Embark for Breeders DNA test, and the results indicate the dog is a mixed breed. While this is uncommon and can be an indication of crossbreeding, there are also situations where purebred dogs receive this result.
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When Embark conducts a DNA Test on a purebred dog, we use a proven scientific approach to assess the genetic makeup of the dog using a process involving reference panels. A reference panel is a group of dogs that have all been registered as purebred in a particular breed. Embark’s reference database of tens of thousands of purebred dogs is the largest and most diverse in the world. This database is used to identify a genetic signature unique to the breed but does not include every dog in every breed.


Why would a purebred dog not match the breed reference panel?
For various reasons, the registered purebred dog tested by Embark may not perfectly match the genetic signature of the reference panel. One example is the dog may have an ancestor that is in a closely related breed which was utilized prior to the closing of the breed’s studbook many generations ago. Another reason is that the dog may come from a bloodline that is geographically very distant from the group of reference panel dogs. These results in no way affect the registered “purebred” status of the dog or its standing with the registry. In fact, because these dogs usually contain genetic signatures not common in the breed, they can be highly useful for maintaining or even increasing genetic diversity in the breed.
For a deeper dive, take a look at how a purebred dog’s DNA may diverge from that of the reference panel.