Dog Community

premature graying

Posted : 8/23/2006 12:02:18 AM

i have a 3 year old brittany/beagle/setter mix. he is an indoor dog, fed a high grade diet with some table scraps, and is up to date on vaccinations. he has an odd coloring for his breed mix, mostly red and black. i have noticed lately he is getting very grey around his muzzle and have wondered about it for sometime, but brushed it off as he has not showed any other signs of premature aging, but tonight i noticed one of his whiskers above his eyes was white as well. i was just curious if i should be concerned enough by this to make a specific appt with his vet right away or if it is something i should just wait to mention at his regular check up in a few months. also im not sure if it would be a cause or effect to this, but he is inbred, "bad inbred" as my husband would say, as the sire was the son of the dam he was born of.

i have included a picture, while blurry shows the amount of white around his muzzle. he has always had some white there but it has been increasing greatly in the past year.

Xebby

Posted : 8/23/2006 12:58:41 AM

Some breeeds of dogs don't fully mature till around 3 years of age and some will even change colors through their enter life. For example beardies are born black but as they get older they will become gery, blue, brown or anouther similar color around the age of 3 many contune to change colors as they age.

I would have never guess him to be a brittany/beagle/setter mix. I know brittanys sometimes have an older look to their face but beagles seem to look like puppies for most their life. My best guess would be that he has reached his mature colors, it may even grey more as he gets older. Could have something to do with being inbred but it's almost impossible to say.

gayle

Posted : 8/23/2006 2:24:41 AM

thank you for replying so quickly. i hope all that is happening is that he is coming into his full coloring. i didnt think to mention it but the type of setter he is mixed with is a gordon, although he is mostly brittany as the mom was full blood brittany and the dad was a brittany/gordon-beagle mix. also he is the only of any litters of pups from that mother to look like that, most had long hair like a brittany with the color and markings of a gordon setter, but my pup was an odd one and significantly smaller than the rest of the pups, or the runt i guess.

anyway, i didnt know if any of that matters, but thought i would mention it just in case. i wanted to show a full pic of him too so you could see what could come of his mix, i've never seen another like him.

Xebby

Posted : 8/23/2006 2:45:41 AM

I've had the pleasure to meet the #1 gorden in the country and he was a beauty! I love setters but I don't think they would be the breed for me, after I worked with a few. I just can't imagin how a beagal and a gordon would mix but you've show it's possible. Your dog is very unique, I'm shure if you posted his pic on as a "guess the breed" topic no one would even have a clue. I maybe see begal but with the sort coat the other two breed don't seem to come out as well. It might be a good idea to at least mention the greying to the vet the next time he goes in but I wouldn't stress to much over it.

mrv

Posted : 8/23/2006 5:54:32 AM

the greying you are describing is more likely a breed charachteristic based on the parentage of your dog. My terv started getting white on the muzzle by three, he looks like an old man now at seven. I expect a very white face by 12.

Melaney B.

Posted : 8/23/2006 11:09:55 AM

I have always noticed this more in the darker colored breeds.

Trish Yovanovich

Posted : 8/24/2006 9:30:56 PM

He may be grey but he sure is cute!!!!

Julitza

Posted : 8/24/2006 9:48:03 PM

Wow that second picture is definately frame worthy! Gorgeous pic, i'd blow it up poster size [

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Just to add though, some dogs grey faster than others. Our Shih Tzu was a gorgeous jet black but when she turned about two she started greying and by 4 she was a salt and pepper type of color. Also, our Golden is 2 and a half and she if you look at her in the right light you can see a bit of discoloring on her face where it will eventually turn white

gayle

Posted : 8/25/2006 12:42:12 AM

thank you everyone, i feel alot better about his old man beard

he is my first dog that i've seen grow up from a puppy so it freaked me out a little. thanks again!