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SABLES: GENETICS AND MYTHS
by Fred Lanting
Copyright October, 2008 -
Some time ago, a GSD breeder-judge in Germany wrote an article that was carried on the Internet, entitled "The Sable Shepherd… A Museum Piece?" (liberal translation). Several people have asked me about some of the statements in it, and I thought a magazine or website piece might be the easiest way to answer.
The color pattern we in America call "sable" is called "grau" (gray) in Germany. Neither word is fully accurate, but experienced dog people know what is meant. The strict translation of what is possibly originally Latin, then Russian-Scandinavian in origin, but is found in variations in many languages including "sable" in English and French, is "black". Actually, even before that meaning, it was the name of a small glossy-black weasel or ermine found in far-northern Europe and Asia. From the Latin zobola, Russian soboli, Scandinavian sabel, and German zobel, we get our word, but not our meaning. It brings a different image in other breeds, such as the Collie, Basenji, and Sheltie where it refers to a reddish-yellow dog. Even in the Pembroke Welsh Corgi, the sable dog gives mostly an orange impression. In the Shar-Pei, we see a color that looks like the GSD sable, but has a different genetic constitution. There is even the white GSD, some of which appear to be genetically modified sables, but certainly without any black.
Let’s define a couple more terms before proceeding. Everyone knows what is usually meant by the word "color": the reflection or refraction of certain wavelengths of light that tell us the apple is green, the traffic light is red, or the rainbow has seven more or less different hues. But "color" is often the term used when GSD people talk about black-and-tans, blacks, bi-colored dogs, or sables. For that meaning we really should use the term "color pattern", because some of these dogs may have more than one color or hue in the coat: shades of red/yellow/brown, black, white, and "dilutes" (blue and liver). The German word for what we call "tan" is "gelbe" (yellow). While "braun" (what Americans often braggingly like to call "red") is also seen in the Ahnentafeln (SV registration-pedigree), it is genetically and chemically the same as yellow or red, altered with hue and intensity modifier genes.
A hair bulb can manufacture more than one type of melanin, and can alternate production in such a way that some hairs, such as most of those on a sable dog, are dark tipped, followed by a lighter midpiece and an even lighter base (or perhaps a dark base). There may be two shades of yellow: one reddish and the other cream, on one shaft. Sometimes the phaeomelanin (this form produces the non-dark pigment) is concentrated in the tip, and the eumelanin (which produces the black, blue, or liver) is in the base, though not often. The banding or alternating between dark and light sections results in a beautiful variety of colorations in the breed, especially around the neck, withers, and shoulders. The definition of a sable pattern should refer to the guard hairs being tipped with black. The more hairs and the longer that tipping, the darker the dog. The richer the phaeomelanin-influenced parts (undercoat and lower/ventral/leg portions), the more the dog is called a "red sable" instead of a "gray sable" (or faded). The "black sables" are those with much tipping but not always much red underneath.
So-called "golden sable" resulting from good brown lower parts of the guard hairs but not as much black tipping as some other dogs pictured in this article.
Agouti is a term borrowed from genetics studies on that type of rat. It refers to the banded‑hair coloration or pattern seen in Elkhounds, wolves, and sable German Shepherds, but can also be seen in varying amounts in the neck, shoulder, tail, croup and border markings in saddle‑marked dogs. Some saddle-marked B&T GSDs have so much grizzling in the black blanket or so much undercoat showing, that they are hard to distinguish from sables, and some sables that carry the partially-hidden B&T-saddle pattern recessive have so much of that recessive showing through that they look like washed-out B&Ts. At one chromosome’s locus A, the German Shepherd Dog has a pair of genes, one on each of the chromosome pair, which together determine the major markings we call "pattern". This pair may have two of the same or two different alleles, one more dominant and the other recessive to it.
Ay, sable — The superscript y is used in genetic parlance to refer to the yellow pigment that can dominate the appearance of the tan‑sable dog, even though a true sable should have those hairs tipped with black. That black appearance has been lost in many breeds through selective breeding. In other breeds, where a more dominant allele for self-color (solid) exists, the sable or yellow pattern is ay (lower-case a, because the capital letter refers to the most dominant allele in the series). For example, the black Lab is As while the yellow Lab is ay. The color lying under the black tips on a GSD’s coat, for example, is due to other genes. A sable is generally held to mean a dog with black-tipped guard hairs, this banding being obvious over most of the dog’s surface, especially the dorsal parts. In those other breeds I mentioned, the word is used variously to refer to a yellow dog regardless of the presence of any black tipping. Many or most "sable" Collies and Corgis have lost the genes calling for expression of black in the hair. There is also a "white sable", but that subject is treated in a different article.
as, saddle — The saddle pattern gene is below Ay in order of dominance. The use of lower case shows it is not as strong in its influence over pattern as the sable gene, but we know it is dominant over other alleles in the series. The saddle pattern has been the most popular in the past 50 years. Whether, as the Germans describe it, the base color is black and the tan portions are the markings, or whether (as some of us think of it) the base color is brown/tan and the saddle, muzzle, and head markings are the areas of added pigmentation, it's moot, like arguing about the color of a zebra.
at , bicolor — Again, this pattern, resembling the coloration of a B&T Coonhound or Doberman Pinscher, is best discussed in a separate article. Some think it belongs on a different chromosome locus.
Incomplete dominance — In the A series, incomplete dominance of one A series allele over a lower one is often, though not always, visible to the experienced eye. A heterozygous Ay as sable (i.e., the genes in the pattern pair not identical, and we would say he carries a recessive for saddle pattern) will have a shadow of a saddle with slightly more dark‑tipped hairs (or longer black band on those hairs) than the homozygous Ay Ay sable has in the areas commonly marked black in the saddle dog. If the sable has a hypostatic (recessive) gene (at the E locus?) for solid black, such a dog is usually considerably darker in overall appearance than are his lighter gray or golden sable relatives. Karilea's Cito, Dipadon's Dasher, and other sables that carried the black factor and were capable of producing solid blacks had this dark look. Many "working-lines" German Shepherd Dogs carry the black or bi-color recessive (or both?) and have a very dark appearance. It may well be that most extensively-covered very dark sables carry the bicolor recessive, and/or the black factor at the E locus as well. This may be especially true in the working lines, where these three patterns have not been pushed out of the picture by the saddle-marked dogs as has happened in the breed show ring. For greater detail on genetics of coat color and other factors, get a copy of Fred Lanting's Total GSD
Since beginners are often confused as to what will happen if they breed a certain bitch to a certain dog, let’s put some dogs together on paper and see what you get. As an example, the homozygous sable, with both A series alleles (genes in the pair) being Ay, is bred to the homozygous B&T saddle, as as. Regardless of other factors such as depth or distribution of pigment, the Ay Ay X as as (sable-saddle cross) will give a litter of 100 percent sable phenotype, though possibly not as distinctly patterned as the one parent's, and all the pups will carry the as as a recessive. Very few homozygous sables seem to be running around, so most of the ones you see will produce some B&T pups, even when bred to another heterozygous sable. The variations in shades and markings are influenced by "modifier genes" such as E, Em, e, or eb which govern the extension of black pigment to a mask, and influence on what percentage of the body that pigment will be used. E alleles appear to act more as "advisors" to the A series. There was a nice article on masks and patterns, by the "sable" (blonde, not black-tipped) Linda Shaw, in the July/August 2000 Schutzhund-USA issue.
The Famed Scotland-born Dunmonaidh Junker
Sable Prima Zorba’s B&T recessive shows through
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General info on The Sieger Show Experience with tour guide Fred Lanting
The SV Bundessieger-Zuchtschau (BSZS or Sieger Show) in Germany is generally held in the last week of August or first week in September at a different location each year, depending on stadiums available. (The cost of stadium for this one-weekend event, and the competition with soccer/football events that sign contracts for many per year, determine the choice.) For the past 20 years or so, I have offered my non-profit 6-7-day guided tour of the show and sightseeing, including visits to kennels and training clubs. Get an SV judge's perspective of the bloodlines and procedures, along with experienced introductions to Germany's culture and beauty. My groups come from all parts of the globe, so even just the companionship is like a world-travel experience. We usually arrive on the Wednesday or Thursday before the show, and return the following Wednesday.
Looking for a great dog-related experience combined with seeing a different part of the world? Whatever your breed or activity in dogs, the annual Lanting guided show-and-sightseeing tour could be the experience of a lifetime. Read my annual “Impressions” articles on various websites for an idea of what we've seen in recent years. Tours centered on other countries’ Sieger Shows, the BSP, and world Schutzhund trials are also available if enough people sign up.
None of "my people" have ever been sorry, and all have wished they had done it earlier! You will see the best of the breed, meet important GSD people, sometimes see another country or two, and have the over-all greatest dog show experience of your life. I also include, if you decide to join us, a variety of travel tips. I offer an SV conformation judge's perspective of the show (I also have AKC, UKC, and foreign judging experience). One year, when a travel-agency tour leader again deserted his group, they came to where my group was sitting and asked me questions. References available from previous tour participants. Testimonials are numerous. I hope you will join us and recommend this tour to your friends and acquaintances. As a judge with much experience in Schutzhund training and competition, and being very familiar with Western Europe, I am able to give the best tour possible. People going it on their own cannot see the important parts of the country (sometimes we tour adjacent countries, too), and paying for your rental car is more than chipping in to pay for the van and my expenses. Read my "Impressions" on various websites for an idea of what we've seen in recent years.
There will be 3 long days of the big show, and about 3 to 4 days of sightseeing and visits. Please let me know as soon as you can, with a $400 (US) deposit, so I can start putting my notification list together and finalize (hold) hotel reservations for you. There is a lot of work involved in putting together such a tour! I will make the hotel plans based on your deposits, & arrange the visits and van(s). Easy, fun, educational and, for most --- the unique trip of a lifetime. You will not be any younger next year, and if you don't make the decision to get out there and smell the roses NOW, while you think of it, you're more likely than not to lose the opportunity and desire. Join the group! Tell others about it, too. Fred
Contact me at Mr.GSD[at]netscape.com and tell your friends and Internet contacts.
Postal mail: 3565 Parches Cove, Union Grove, AL 35175-8422 USA
Editor’s Note: A well-respected and frequent GSD specialty and all-breed judge for many clubs around the world, with KC and other-country credentials, Mr. Lanting since 1966 has lectured on Gait-and-Structure, Canine Orthopedic Disorders, and other topics, and has judged in about 30 countries, including the prestigious FCI Asian Shows hosted by Japan Kennel Club and the KC of India, the Scottish Kennel Club, and many National Specialties in the USA and elsewhere. He has been described by a former OFA director as the world’s leading non-veterinarian authority on hip dysplasia. A dog breeder since 1945, a GSD owner since 1947, and a show judge since 1979, he has lectured at numerous veterinary schools in the USA and abroad. He is the author of “must read” books for the dog owner (see below for ordering info). Curriculum Vitae available upon request.
Announcing the new “Canine HD and Other Orthopedics Disorders” book: The expanded revision is a comprehensive (nearly 600-page), amply illustrated, annotated, monumental work that is suitable as a coffee-table book, a reference work for breeders and veterinarians, and a study adjunct for veterinary students. It is equally valuable for the owner of any breed. It covers every aspect of HD and other orthopedic, bone, or spinal disorders, and includes genetics, diagnostic methods, treatment options, and the role of environment. Your autographed copy will be mailed from the USA as soon as the appropriate amount is received and is processed. Pricing: US $68, plus $5 postage in the U.S., or ask about mail overseas. Combine orders with “The Total German Shepherd Dog” by the same author ($50 plus postage). 17 of the 20 chapters are suitable for owners of any breed.
