The Entlebucher Mountain Dog is a very agile tricolor Sennenhund breed from Switzerland. They are slightly longer than they are tall, and some of them have a congenital bobtail.
Black White & Tan
These dogs are black tricolor with fawn to mahogany tan markings.
BASE PATTERN
tan point
MERLE
–
OTHER
–
EUMELANIN
black
INTENSITY
tan, fawn, mahogany
WHITE
white markings
Faulty Colors
“Faults in colour:
– Other than tricoloured coat.
– Basic colour other than black.”
FCI Breed Standard[2]
Base Patterns
The base pattern describes the placement of phaeomelanin and eumelanin in the coat. There is an epistatic hierarchy between these genes: A locus < K locus < E locus.
- The A locus controls the basic distribution of pigment types.
- Next, the K locus can add eumelanin on top of the A locus pattern.
- Finally, the E locus regulates the general ability to produce eumelanin.
A Locus
| at | tan point |
Entlebucher Mountain Dogs are fixed for tan points (at/at).
K Locus
| ky | wild-type |
Entlebucher Mountain Dogs are fixed for normal pattern expression (ky/ky).
E Locus
| E | wild-type |
Entlebucher Mountain Dogs have normal pattern expression (E/E).
Entlebucher Base Patterns
| A LOCUS | K LOCUS | E LOCUS | PATTERN |
|---|---|---|---|
| at/at | ky/ky | E/E | tan point |
Base Colors
The base color is determined by the B locus and D locus.
B Locus
| B | black |
Entlebucher Mountain Dogs all have black pigment (B/B).
D Locus
| D | normal |
Entlebuchers have normal pigment (D/D).
Red Intensity
The AKC calls the colors seen in Entlebuchers tan markings “shades of rich fawn to mahogany“. The FCI call the same color range “yellow to reddish-brown“. The CKC uses “yellow to rusty brown“.
White Markings
The white in the Entlebucher Sennehund is typical of whitehead.
“White markings include a distinct small blaze, which runs without interruption from top of head over bridge of nose and can wholly or partially cover the muzzle. White from chin to chest without interruption. An inverted cross on chest desirable. In full-length tail, white tip is desirable. White on all four feet.”
“Undesirable but tolerated – small white patch on the nape of the neck (not more than 2 inches), high boot, socks and bib.”
AKC Breed Standard[1]
“Distinct small with blaze which runs without interruption from top of the head over the bridge of nose and can wholly or partially cover the muzzle. White from chin over throat without interruption to chest. White on all four feet. On a long tail white tip desirable.”
“Undesirable but tolerated: small white patch on nape of neck (not more than half the size of a palm).”
FCI Breed Standard[2]
The FCI has a list of faulty markings for this breed:
- Interrupted blaze.
- White patch on nape of neck bigger than half of apalm.
- White above pasterns (“boots”). Absence of tan between the white and the black on the forelegs.
- White not on all 4 feet.
- White collar around the whole neck (serious fault).
- Divided white on chest (serious fault).
- Absence of any white on head.
Entlebucher Eye Colors
Entlebucher Mountain Dogs have brown eyes. Lighter yellow “bird of prey” eyes are considered faulty. Puppies with too much face white might occasionally produce blue eyes.
“Must be brown, darker eye preferred.”
“Disqualifying fault – Blue eyes or yellow hawk eyes.”
AKC Breed Standard[1]
“Rather small, roundish, dark brown to hazel.”
“Fault: Eyes too light, too sunken or protruding.”
“Disqualifying Fault: Yellow hawk eyes, wall eyes, blue eyes.”
FCI Breed Standard[2]
Entlebucher Nose Colors
Entlebucher Mountain Dogs have a black nose.
“Nose – Black.”
AKC Breed Standard[1]
“Black, protruding slightly over front edge of lips.”
FCI Breed Standard[2]
Entlebucher Coat Type
Entlebuchers have a double coat. Their dense undercoat can sometimes show gray to brownish colors.
“Double coat. Topcoat short, close fitting, harsh and shiny. Undercoat dense; of varying color. Wavy or soft coat tolerated but not preferred.”
AKC Breed Standard[1]
“Double coat (Stockhaar). Topcoat short, close fitting, harsh and shiny. Undercoat dense. Slightly wavy hair on withers and/or back tolerated, but not desirable”
FCI Breed Standard[2]
Some Entlebuchers may be carriers for a long hair allele. Breeding two carriers can produce fluffy Entlebucher puppies. This rarely happens since genetic testing became available.
Related Breeds
The Entlebucher Mountain Dog is closely related to the other Swiss mountain dog breeds.
Learn More
Links
[1] American Kennel Club (AKC): Entlebucher Mountain Dog
[2] Fédération Cynologique Internationale (FCI): Entlebuch Cattle Dog
[3] Royal Kennel Club (RKC): Entlebucher Mountain Dog
[4] Canadian Kennel Club (CKC): Entlebucher Mountain Dog
[5] Dreger et al. (2019). True Colors: Commercially-acquired morphological genotypes reveal hidden allele variation among dog breeds, informing both trait ancestry and breed potential. PLoS ONE 14(10): e0223995. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0223995
Image Credits
Anja Schröder/pixabay.com
Evgeniia Iakimenko/canva.com
Gregory Wolf/pexels.com
happyborder/canva.com
igmarx/canva.com
Irina Nedikova/canva.com
Katrinbechtel/pixabay.com
kelifamily/canva.com
michaklootwijk/canva.com
ms-grafixx/yayimages.com
Nadiia_Diachenko/canva.com
Olivia Anne Snyder/unsplash.com
phortcach/yayimages.com
vikarus/depositphotos.com
vkph/canva.com
vkph/yayimages.com
Hi! I’m Steffi. I am a biologist and a big time dog nerd. You are curious about coat color genetics? You’ve come to the right place! Read more.