# GSD Puppy Color, Adult Prediction?



## Laura Bollschweiler

Okay, first off, I know "No good dog is a bad color"

But really, what's up with GSD coloring as puppies? It's so strange to me!! Other breeds, what you see is pretty much what you get later. 
GSDs can be yellow and then one day - bang - you have a sable.

So if there's any color experts out there, care to share what color this pup might be in the future? The litter has tans with black stripes down the back and some dark sable looking ones and two blacks...but this one is just a little different from the others. Pup is four weeks old and from two sables.























We did learn it's probably not best to take pictures of pups when they're sleeping. "Hey, wake up, we wanna take pictures." One poor pup was literally asleep on his feet.

Laura


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## Adam Swilling

Uh, sable?


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## Julie Ann Alvarez

Black & Red Sable would be my guess. I think he's goning to be gorgous.


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## susan tuck

They are about a month old now? Is the black extending over the top of all 4 feet? Interesting, to say the least! So he has the mantle already showing on the top of his neck, and he has a pretty dark face? My best guess is dark sable (grey).


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## Rachel Kilburn

Very light sable?


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## Don Turnipseed

Well, I would say, red sable, maybe dark sable(grey), or maybe light sable Laura. Hope that helps.


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## Laura Bollschweiler

All right, you boys are soooo funny! :lol:

I just don't get how all these pups are all going to end up sable when they start out so different! It's not like it matters a huge amount because I won't pick based on color, but things need to make sense to me and this color thing doesn't. Yes, I'm an overthinker.

Here's a four-week pic of a tan male with a black skunk stripe that's growing down the sides and a dark sable female. Sorry about the pose on the male...he was completely asleep. Now how is it possible that these pups are going to both be sable when they look so different?


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## Mike Scheiber

I see 4 sable pups from lite to dark hope that helps


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## ann schnerre

with sables, because they do change color so much after birth, your best predictor of adult color is what they looked like at birth.

i love sables because of the color changes they go through; but again, their color at birth is the best predictor of adult color.


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## Bob Scott

I'm thinking the tan male with the skunk stripe may just be a coated dog.


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## Anne Pridemore

Only GSD color I will trust on a puppy is Black or White --- everything else is a coin toss. :lol:

I'll call him dark sable with no clear pattern. Lets start a puppy color pool! :razz:


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## Courtney Guthrie

I say Red Sable. The hair shafts are red not black as would be in a black sable!


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## Mary Buck

Red sable...the stripe on the back of the other will spread as he gets older and make him darker.........this one will llighten up. 

Cool color...I like it


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## JOHN WINTERS

I know what you mean, here is my sable at 10 weeks and again at 20 weeks. As you can see a very large difference in coloration.


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## Sue DiCero

1. Dark Sable on the 1st
2. Red/dark sable on the 2nd.
3. Possible black sable on the 3rd.


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## Jennifer Michelson

pup looks sable. Maybe grey--those guard hairs look silver. I 've had 3 sables, the 2 I got as 8 week olds lightened up and then went to dark. Here are some pictures of Remus from birth to 6 months old.
2 weeks old:


4ish weeks old:


remus at 3 months (his Malinois stage)


Remus at 6ish months:


head shot in shade--a little more true to color:


Now at 8 months he is a little darker still.


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## Dana McMahan

I think you are suppose to part the hairs and look at the base coat. I know a Showline breeder who told me thats how she knows where the saddle will lay and how dark the red will be. And in other breeds that do go through a full color change (yorkies born black turn silver, or silver poodles are born black and around 6-9 weeks their coat turns silver), you could part the hair as the color change was happening and figure out the color it was going to be. Perhaps it is the same with sable shepherds.


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## Wawashkashi Tashi

Jennifer Michelson said:


> remus at 3 months (his Malinois stage)


Haha.. we gave one of the guys in our training group a hard time over his "Mechelar" that he was trying to pass off as a GSD. Here's a video of her looking like a Mal-mix.
http://www.youtube.com/profile?user=WorkingBB#p/u/2/zygC7ZcgeRw
He took our ribbing pretty well & is now vindicated -she looks like a thick, dark sable GSD! Still with the nice environmental nerves & drive though!


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## ann schnerre

that video just made me SMILE!!  

what a proud killer-puppy


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## Jennifer Michelson

Very cute little girl. Love how she took off down the aisle by herself!!


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