Merle Chihuahua- Everything About Chihuahua Color Pattern

July 6, 2024

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The Merle chihuahua dog breed is considered to be one of the most popular dog breeds in the United state. Merle chihuahuas are small dogs in height but they are quite different from the other chihuahuas due to their coat. What Do you think about merle chihuahuas like when and where they first originated? Lets know about all these kinds of questions in this article.

What is a merle chihuahua?

Merle chihuahua is a specific type of coat color which is known as merle. It means the coats of chihuahuas are covered with mottled colors which consist of irregular patches.
The exact shades of merle chihuahua can vary depending on the coat of merle chihuahua.
One of the most interesting things is that merle chihuahua was not an official type which was recognized by AKA for the chihuahuas dog breed.
It is also called the latest design and color which has become very popular in the world.

History of merle chihuahua

Lets know about the history of the merle chihuahua which can increase your interest in this dog breed.

Actually, there was no record of the merle chihuahua before the 1940s.
The merle chihuahua was bred into the line by cross matching of the chihuahua with the breed known for the traits.
It is also not a natural occurrence. According to some people, the merle chihuahua has been very popular in the last 20 years.
However, some searchers suggested that this coating type in chihuahua has been around for about half a century.
Chihuahuas merle color was caused by a gene known as Merle Allele. Whereas there are different forms of certain genes which are called alleles.

Do merle chihuahuas differ from the other chihuahuas?

Now the question is that are these merle chihuahuas differ from the other chihuahuas, so let know about this.

Merle chihuahuas are differ from the other chihuahuas because of the coat.
Blue eyes are very common in mostly newborn chihuahuas. So merle chihuahuas are more likely to have blue eyes as compared to other or non merle chihuahuas.
The merle gene can easily affect the color of chihuahuas eyes and skin.
Some merle chihuahuas have two blue eyes, but some chihuahuas have one blue colored eye.
According to some people, the merle chihuahua are 4.6 present deaf.

Here you can see the link which is given below. The merle chihuahuas are quite different from the non merle chihuahua by their coat.

What is the merle gene?

Merle gene is a genetic mutation which produces the characteristic mottled patchwork effect in pantone and blue merle.
The Merle gene is also responsible for producing the different colors and patterns which are not naturally found in the chihuahuas like, Black, blue, tan, red and cream.

Types of merle gene

There are two types of merle gene which are given below.

Merle allele

An incomplete dominant gene is known as merle allele.

Non merle allele.

Recessive gene is known as a non merle allele.

The breeding of non merle and merle chihuahuas

Let’s discuss the breeding of merle and non merle chihuahuas.

In a sir or a dam the presence of merle genes will determine that their offspring are merles.
The chihuahuas puppies can only be born from the merle gene.

1.Non merle x with non merle parents

The entire litter will consist of non merle chihuahua puppies.

2.Merle x merle parents

Half of the litter will be merle, one quarter will be non merles whereas one quarter will be double merles.

3.Merl x non merle parents

Half of the litter will consist of merles while half of the litter will consist of non merles.

Double merle chihuahua

A standard merle chihuahua is a MM genotype in which they inherited the merle gene from one parent and the non merle allele gene from the other parent.
A merle chihuahua with chihuahua is a MM genotype. So the double merles inherited a copy of the gene from each parent.
Double merles have no same characteristics of coat patterns like standard merles.
They have smaller and few patches of dark colored fur.
They have light base color as compared to standard merles. Whereas standard merles have only one copy of gene but double merles have double copies of gene.
Double merle have light coats with two copies of merle gene.
Some double merle chihuahuas are entirely white but they have only small patches of dark fur.
Double merles have very risky health issues than standard merles.

Common health issues in the merle chihuahuas

Merle chihuahuas have some health issues which are very common in this dog breed.

Deafness is very common in the merle chihuahuas.
Blindness is a very common issue in the merle chihuahuas like they can suffer from congenital eye defects.
Skin cancer is very common.
Hair loss is also very common in the merle dogs.

Do the Merle gene affect the chihuahuas coat?

The merle gene affected the distribution of pigments of the chihuahuas coat.
With two pigments there are various colors of chihuahuas coat.
Merle genes affect the distribution of eumelanin which controls the black colors in the chihuahuas coat.
Chihuahuas coat is governed by two pigments,

1.Eumelanin

It governed black in the chihuahuas coat.

2.Pheomelanin

It governed red in the chihuahuas coat.

Further classification of the merle chihuahuas

Here I am going to discuss more about the classification of merle chihuahuas.

They are classified into blue or red colors which depend on the shade of dark colors.

1.Blue merles

They have patches of black fur.

2.Red merles

They have red or copper colored patches of fur.

Other breed with merle gene except chihuahua

There are many other dog breeds which are born with the merle gene which are given below.

American shepherd.
American Pitbull terrier.
American bully.
Australian cattle dog.
Border collie.
Chinese crested.
Dalmatian.
Australian shepherd.
Finnish lapheld
Great Dane.

Conclusion

Merle chihuahuas are very loyal to their owners and this dog breed also wants to be loved. Actually merle chihuahua is not a rare color. They have blue eye colors and their coats have light colors and dark colors too with different shades. The coat colors are very impressive for those who are looking for the merle chihuahuas. I hope you will be satisfied to know about all the merle chihuahua.