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COAT COLORS


The coat color of Japanese Chin include:  
  • Black & White
  • Red & White
  • Sable & White
  • Black Tan & White, also known as a Tri  - "The term tan points shall include tan or red spots over each eye, inside the ears, on both cheeks, and at the anal vent area if displaying any black. The term red shall include all shades of red, orange, and lemon, and sable, which includes any aforementioned shade intermingled or overlaid with black.” - AKC Breed Standard
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Color Examples by ShowDog.com
Japanese Chin Coat Color Study 2007 By Dr. Leanne Bertani, Adrienne Wilder, & JP Yousha
The Japanese Chin Club of America Health Committee embarked on a study of coat color. They collected cheek swab samples from Japanese Chin of various colors. The samples were sent to Dr. Sheila Schmutz of the University of Saskatchewan for DNA testing at the A, B, E, and K loci. Read the complete study here: ​JCCA.Bertani.Chin-Color-Study.pdf
JAPANESE CHIN COAT COLORS STUDY
Publ. med tillstånd av Joy Wescott


The following is based on information gathered from the genetic color study of the Japanese Chin.  For breeders or owners wanting to know what colors are possible from a particular breeding or how they got the colors they produced in a litter, this chart should be able to help you.

If I have made any errors, feel free to contact me and let me know.

For simplicity sake, white is not represented in the genetic sequencing.  We know that the breed is homozygous for white spotting.  So white, in some degree, will appear with all color combinations.

K-conceals the base color making the dog appear black
kk-reveals the base color showing sable or black and tan ee-restriction for red.  Red includes any shade of dark clear red to pale lemon.  Reds are born white (or with very faint markings) and get DARKER as they age.
a^y^a^y-sable
a^ta^t-black and tan
Color dominance list
K is dominant to k.  K hides all base color (sable or black/tan)  kk reveals base color.
a^y (sable) is dominant over a^t (black and tan).  In order for a chin to show black and tan it must carry a^ta^t in a homozygous pair thus leaving no place for a^y.
ee-is a restriction gene and restricts ALL pigment in the coat. It also appears to affect the nose and skin pigment (in this breed) to some degree. ee dog can be any shade of red.  This includes a deep Irish setter red to a very pale washed out yellow sometimes called lemon.  This is the same gene.  ALL red chin are born with no color or very little color (sometimes faint marks) and get DARKER as they age.  Any other "red" that does not do this is not ee but a^ya^y.

It is very important for people reading this chart to understand that my prediction of color combinations are based on the color combination possibilities.  Just because you breed a litter once and get one kind of color it does not mean that that is what your parent dogs carry.  You must have a significant number of offspring to truly understand the possible color genes that the parent dogs carry.  Male dogs bred to different females usually reveal more than females because they can produce more offspring in a shorter period of time.

The chart below is based on the theory that the parent dogs have been together enough times to have established the genetic potential they offer.
Unknown genes are left blank.  This usually means that they are homozygous for their dominant or if the recessive was present it would not matter due to the dominant genes already present.

Offspring                                    Parent Color                   Probable Parent Color or carrier
Black                                                Black, Black                             KK                          KK
­­­­Red                                                      Red, Red                                 ee                           ee
 Black, Red                                     Black, Black                           KKEe                      KKEe
 Black, Red                                     Black, Red                             KKEe                       KKee
 Sable                                               Sable, Sable                           a^ya^y                   a^ya^y
 Sable, Black                                 Black, Sable                            Kka^ya^y             kka^ya^y
Sable, red                                       Sable, Red                              kka^ya^yEe         kka^ya^yee
 Sable, black and tan                  Sable, Sable                           kka^ya^t               kka^ya^t
 Black and tan                          Blk/tan,  Blk/tan                       kka^ta^t                kka^ta^t
 Blk/tan, Sable, Red                   Sable, Sable                            kka^ya^tEe          kka^ya^tEe
 Blk/tan, Red                               Blk/tan, Red                            kka^ta^tEe           kka^ta^tee
 Sable, Blk/tan, Red, Black     Black, Black                            Kka^ya^tEe          Kka^ya^tEe
Black, Black                                   Sable, Red                              kka^ya^yEE         KKee
 Black, Red, Sable                        Sable, Red                              kka^ya^yEe         Kka^yEe
 Red, Blk/tan                              Blk/tan, Blk,Tan                       kka^ta^tEe          kka^ta^tEe
 
Color produce that cannot happen due to genetics of the parents and other anomalies.
- Black, sable or blk/tan from two red parents.   If you produce full pigmentation from two red parents this means one of two things.  You've either got a mis-mate or one of your "reds" is actually a sable.  Sables can look like a red or lemon upon adult hood.  The only sure fire way to know for sure is to either swab the dog or to have seen it born. Sable dogs will always be born darker and get lighter. Red dogs are always born lighter and get darker.  Sables will sometimes retain a few black hairs in the coat, but not always.  You may have to look very close to find them.
- Sable offspring from two black/tan parents.  The black and tan gene a^t must be present in homozygous form.  Meaning that there must be two copies.  This means there is NO where for the sable gene to sit.  Therefore it cannot be carried by either parent.  Sable is dominant. If it is there, it is being expressed.  Two possible explanations.  You either have a mis-mate or one of the parents is actually a sable.  Shaded sables (sables that carry the black and tan gene) can sometimes be so dark that they are mistaken for a black and tan dog.  A tale-tale sign that a "black/tan" is actually a sable will be brown hairs in the under coat of the black, or over large tan points.  I have heard these referred to as "flame marked" black/tans.  If you breed two black/tans and they produce sables one of them is in fact a sable.
- Blue merle: Does not exist in this breed you have a mixed breed some where in the back.
- Blue/Gray:  This color does not appear in this breed.  Dogs of this color are the produce of a mix somewhere.  More than likely from a Peke, Tibetan terrier, or a Shih.
- Solid Black:  This breed is homozygous for white spotting. Solid black offspring are improbable.  A mis-mate should be considered. Do not mistake a solid black dog for a dog with very little white or bad markings.

How to use this chart:
There are a myriad of possible color combinations and I am sure that I have missed some possibilities. If you have a combination that I have missed feel free to drop me a line. [email protected]
The best way to use this chart would be to start with the offspring from a breeding, find the color combinations then match them to the parent colors.  The genetic probability of those parents will be found on the far right.

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CHIYOKO Japanese Chin
​Canadian Kennel Club Permanently Registered
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CONTACT
Tracy Hart & Lloyd Howley
Call / text Tracy: 613.725.4518
E-mail: [email protected]
Location: Kars, Ontario, Canada
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CANADIAN KENNEL CLUBS & EVENTS
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Canadian Kennel Club (CKC) Website

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Canuck Dogs Website - Canadian Dog Event Information

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  • HOME
  • NEWS
  • OUR CHIN
    • AVAILABLE & PLANNED BREEDINGS
    • CURRENT FEMALES >
      • PAST FEMALES
    • CURRENT MALES >
      • PAST MALES
    • PICTURES
    • YOUNGSTERS
  • THE JAPANESE CHIN
    • BREED STANDARDS
    • CHIN CLUBS
    • COAT COLORS
    • HEALTH & RESOURCES
    • SIZE PREDICTABILITY