Special grooming for blue merles?

Congrats on the new babies! I breed and show mainly AOAC's (blues and tris) and the main real difference in the fur is that the blues can be a bit more coarse. Some feel that they need to condition it to make it softer but I treat it mainly the same way that I do any other coat. When my dogs are bathed, they get a good quality shampoo and and good conditioner so that I can comb and brush them easily. Make sure that you put some sort of sunscreen on their coats if they are going to be out in the sun alot. Both the black and blue coat are prone to sunburn thus turning it a rusty red color.

Hope this helps!
 
Welcome! They are so adorable. Thanks for sharing all those pictures!!!:biggrin2: I love blue's and tri's - well love all shelties, but those are my favourite colours. :wink2:
 
Crestlynn said:
Congrats on the new babies! I breed and show mainly AOAC's (blues and tris) and the main real difference in the fur is that the blues can be a bit more coarse. Some feel that they need to condition it to make it softer but I treat it mainly the same way that I do any other coat. When my dogs are bathed, they get a good quality shampoo and and good conditioner so that I can comb and brush them easily. Make sure that you put some sort of sunscreen on their coats if they are going to be out in the sun alot. Both the black and blue coat are prone to sunburn thus turning it a rusty red color.

Hope this helps!
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I've found the opposite. All of my blues and tri's (I'm also into AOAC's *any other allowed color aka any color but sable and white) have much softer fur than my sables.

Other breeder's I've spoken to have the same issue. The blues and tri's more often have the incorrect soft coat.

The black's are only prone to sunburn if they're a fading or red black. Jet blacks won't sunburn or fade. There are two types of black in a coat (tri or blue). A red black (which is black, but sunburns to a harsh red), and a true (or jet) black, which won't sunburn. I have a jet black, and no matter how long he's out in the sun, he will not sunburn. My mother had a red black, which sunburnt immediately.
 
Narmowen said:
I've found the opposite. All of my blues and tri's (I'm also into AOAC's *any other allowed color aka any color but sable and white) have much softer fur than my sables.

Other breeder's I've spoken to have the same issue. The blues and tri's more often have the incorrect soft coat.

The black's are only prone to sunburn if they're a fading or red black. Jet blacks won't sunburn or fade. There are two types of black in a coat (tri or blue). A red black (which is black, but sunburns to a harsh red), and a true (or jet) black, which won't sunburn. I have a jet black, and no matter how long he's out in the sun, he will not sunburn. My mother had a red black, which sunburnt immediately.
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Hmmm...my blues have a beautiful, harsh, stand-offish coat. But then most of them are the darker blues. Maybe the softer variety is coming in with the amount of white that is showing up in the blues. I know the CHW's that I have have a very, very soft coat. I don't have much experience with sables but I do know that my tris have a much different coat than the blues. I must have the jet black ones 'cause mine are never burnt but I have seen some really bad ones!
 
Beautiful babies and thanks for the pictures. You're so lucky to have two of the best kind of dog around.
 
Your babies are adorable! Enjoy them!

I had a blue for a short time who was 3 years old and her coat was coarse. It always felt very dry. I don't think you need to treat it any different though than any other coat. Good quality shampoo and conditioner, regular brushing, etc.
 
:smile2:Thanks for sharing the beautiful pics.
I have sables, tri's and a blue merle, and they all get bathed and brushed the same.
Most of all enjoy them and have fun
Sylvia & our 4 shelties.
 
thanks for all the great info!

Thank you everyone for all the great info! So far, our blue merle's coat is very fluffy, while our tri is very shiny. Both are just gorgeous. (I'm biased, of course, because I'm their Mommy!) If you ever need a little dose of puppy goodness, feel free to log onto Chloe and Misty's webcam at http://www.ustream.tv/channel/chloe-and-misty. Right now, they're napping, but periodically you'll catch them play-fighting and investigating their toys. Thanks for making us feel so welcome to the forums.
 
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