Dog Community

Black dog/silver hairs

Posted : 4/4/2008 11:28:54 PM

Probably a silly topic, but here it is

I have a young dog, about a year old. He is (my fiance and I believe) a German Shepherd/australian cattledog mix. He is black with a grey cross on his chest, a little bit of grey on his toes, and on his belly and under his front legs. When I first adpoted him from the shelter, I didn't notice and silver fur in his face whatsoever. Now he has about 10 total.... they've been increasing over the past few months (Or I've just started noticing them, which is doubtful). Even though his teeth and behavior indicate he's about a year, is it possible he's older than we were told by the HSPCA, and 2 different vets? Because he has grey coloration in places to begin with, does that make him prone to silver hairs and they really aren't a sign of age? They are in no pattern and aren't on his chin/under his eyes like typical aging dogs get. Do black dogs just have the odd grey hair? I've never actually owned a black dog before, so I don't know. Does this also mean he will probably go grey at a young age? LoL, I know I am putting too much thought into this but I've been wondering for awhile now!

BTmomma

Posted : 4/4/2008 11:50:30 PM

im no expert and could be absolutly wrong, but all of my dogs in my life that have gotten older they seem to get more whitish color hair, than gray... but im not totally sure... sorry i couldn't be more help...

Beejou

Posted : 4/4/2008 11:56:16 PM

I always just assumed they didn't get grey hairs until they were 5+. Did you notice your dogs getting them before that age?

Cazzy

Posted : 4/5/2008 12:04:00 AM

I think it's pretty normal, My Shepherd started getting grey hairs around her face and muzzle at around a year old.

oranges81

Posted : 4/5/2008 2:27:05 AM

Maze (Black lab/ BC mix) will be two this month and she's started going grey at around a year. So I wouldn't be surprised if that happens on a lot of black dogs.

jeano

Posted : 4/5/2008 2:31:27 AM

Many dogs change color as they get older. Cattle dogs do, I'm pretty sure.

oranges81

Posted : 4/5/2008 2:34:46 AM

jeano
Many dogs change color as they get older. Cattle dogs do, I'm pretty sure.

This is true! Maze was pure black when she was born.. Only black puppy in the litter. By the time I got her at 6 weeks, her chest, toes and under tail had turned white...

nataliem

Posted : 4/5/2008 2:41:19 AM

I have a 2 year old "pure black" lab mix. You may not see it if you look at her but she does have a few white hairs on her back and chest. They disappear when she sheds but grow back later in different places. She is definately not old. Black Lab mixes are notorious for having odd white patches on their feet, muzzle and chest so maybe your dog has some black lab mixed in.

RidgebackGermansShep

Posted : 4/5/2008 6:04:56 AM

Yep, dogs can get more color as they age. Take my dog, Kaiser, for example. The first pic is current (3 years old)...notice the tan hair on his legs, and the whitish hair on his buttcheek. Th

and here is @ 6 months, solid black

Beejou

Posted : 4/5/2008 10:41:34 AM

Thanks everyone. Glad to know it is just normal coloration and not a sign that he is older than we thought. Your dog Kaiser certainly changed quite a bit! (He is beautiful by the way) will be interesting to see if Roscoe changes more in the future :)

miranadobe

Posted : 4/5/2008 11:17:58 AM

Cattle dogs start out as white, and then develop their dark black and speckled coats over that. I wouldn't be surprised if some of it is new growth. (I'm thinking undercoat really wouldn't show up on the snout. lol) Our cattle dog has a stripe of white down his nose that mixes in w/the black.

Be forewarned - get that dog used to being brushed. Because our ACD sheds the most out of all our dogs, and GSDs are no slouch when it comes to HAIR shed. Ugh!

Another thing to consider about white hairs is if there was an injury to the site. Gracie has two white hairs around her eye where she was bitten at about a year old. She has another on her back where she was injected w/her vaccines.

Beejou

Posted : 4/5/2008 12:22:05 PM

Miranadobe, very interesting about an injury to the site causing white hairs. I don't thihnk that's what happened to Roscoe, but now I'm going to grab ahold of him and look where he was vaccinated/microchipped, lol.

Oh, I know all about the fur. I furminate 3x a week (which someone told me was too much, but otherwise there is fur EVERYWHERE) and fill a gallon size ziploc bag every time! I wonder how he has fur left. Luckily Roscoe is a very good boy and will lay still until I tell him he can leave. (and he still ususally stays, lol)

miranadobe

Posted : 4/5/2008 1:21:37 PM

Good boy Roscoe! Achilles *hates* being brushed...As a matter of fact, I just swept the floor (which was washed Wednesday) and had a kitten-sized lump of hair! :)