Labrador Retriever Color Chart

An overview of Labrador Retriever colors and their genetics.

Labrador Retrievers Color Overview

A short discussion of breed standard patterns in the Labrador Retriever:

Black

Solid black Labrador Retrievers express dominant black (K^B/K^B) with black eumelanin (B/B or B/b).

They can not be e/e at the E locus.

E LOCUS	K LOCUS	B LOCUS
E/E	K^B/K^B	B/B
E/E	K^B/K^B	B/b
E/e	K^B/K^B	B/B
E/e	K^B/K^B	B/b

Chocolate

Solid brown Labs express dominant black (K^B/K^B) with brown eumelanin (b/b).

They can not be e/e at the E locus.

E LOCUS	K LOCUS	B LOCUS
E/E	K^B/K^B	b/b
E/e	K^B/K^B	b/b

Yellow, black-based

Black-based yellow Labradors express recessive red (e/e) with black eumelanin (B/B or B/b).

Their nose will be black but might show some strong pigment fading.

E LOCUS	K LOCUS	B LOCUS
e/e	K^B/K^B	B/B
e/e	K^B/K^B	B/b

Yellow, brown-based

Brown-based yellow “Dudleys” express recessive red (e/e) with brown eumelanin (B/B or B/b).

Their nose will be brown but faded. The AKC considers Dudleys a mismark.

E LOCUS	K LOCUS	B LOCUS
e/e	K^B/K^B	b/b

Labrador Retriever Color Genetics Summary

Not every breed has all the possible alleles associated with coat colors in their gene pool. And some of the alleles known in a dog breed might cause faulty colors.

Every breed has preferred patterns or colors and patterns they deem undesirable, leading to disqualification in the show ring or exclusion from breeding.

The traits found in a dog breed are not all equally likely. Different alleles are more or less common due to differences in allele frequency.

In the US, chocolate (b/b) seems to be more common in field lines than in show lines^[3].

These are color traits that occur in Labrador Retrievers:

E-LOCUS	E^m = melanistic mask E = normal pattern e = recessive red
K-LOCUS	K^B = dominant black k^br = brindle (rare!) k^y = normal pattern (rare!)
A-LOCUS	A^y = sable a^w = agouti a^t = tan points a = recessive black
B-LOCUS	B = black b = brown
D-LOCUS	D = normal pigment
S-LOCUS	S = no spotting
M-LOCUS	m = non-merle

Labrador Retriever Colors

What colors do Labrador Retrievers come in?

Eumelanin

Labrador Retrievers come with either black (B/-) or brown (b/b) eumelanin. Brown is also called “chocolate” or “liver” and comes in lighter or darker shades.

Dominant black dogs will have a solid eumelanin-pigmented coat.

Labrador Color Chart black nose — **black**

Labrador Color Chart brown nose — **brown**

But eumelanin is also present in yellow Labs since it’s the pigment type that’s found in the skin, nose, eye rims, lips, paw pads, nails, or eyes. Yellow Labs also either come with black or brown pigment.

Fading nose pigment is common for yellow dogs. The original pigment color is pushed to the edges of the nose. But the lips or eye rims usually give away a dog’s original pigment color.

Labrador Color Chart black nosed yellow — **yellow, black**

Labrador Color Chart brown based yellow fading nose — **yellow, brown**
“*Dudley*“

Officially, Labs are fixed for non-diluted pigment (D/D).

But diluted black or “charcoal” (B/- d/d) and diluted brown or “silver” (b/b d/d) are intentionally produced by color breeders. There is much speculation as to where the dilution gene came from.…

Yellow Labs with diluted nose pigment are called “champagne“.

Labrador Color Chart blue nose — **diluted black**
“*charcoal*“

Labrador Color Chart lilac nose — **diluted brown**
“*silver*“

Labrador Color Chart champagne nose — **yellow, diluted**
“*champagne*“

Phaeomelanin

The phaeomelanin in “yellow” Labs comes in a range of shades from light cream to fox red.

It’s normal for yellow Labs to have some darker ear, face, or tail shading.

White Spotting

Labrador Retrievers do not come with any of the white spotting traits. But they can in some cases have some residual white, for example on the chest or paws.

Eye Color

The FCI breed standard only states that eyes should be “brown or hazel“^[2].

In AKC Labradors, the eye color should be brown in black and yellow Labradors, and brown or hazel in chocolates. It’s normal for brown-based dogs to have lighter and more honey-colored eyes^[1].

Puppy eyes in brown dogs can look especially light and greenish.

Labradors with color dilution might have lighter eyes with greenish shades even in adulthood.

Labrador Color Chart eye color brown puppy — **Light eyes in puppies with brown (left) or diluted (right) pigment.**

Labrador Color Chart eye color silver champagne puppy — **Light eyes in puppies with brown (left) or diluted (right) pigment.**

Nose Color

According to the AKC breed standard, the nose should be black on black or yellow dogs, and brown on chocolates. This indirectly excludes Dudleys, brown-nosed yellow dogs^[1].

Labrador Color Chart nose and eye color black

Labrador Color Chart nose and eye color black based yellow

The FCI breed standard does not differentiate between yellow dogs with either pigment^[2].

Nose color fading can happen in yellow dogs with any possible eumelanin color.

Champagne, charcoal or silver Labs will have diluted skin and nose pigment.

Labrador Retriever Patterns

What patterns can Labrador Retrievers have?

K^B/K^B
- E/-
  - B/-
    - black
  - b/b
    - brown
- e/e
  - B/-
    - yellow
  - b/b
    - yellow "Dudley"

A Locus

Did you know that underneath their solid coats, most Labradors have a hidden tan point pattern (a^t/-)?

However, Labrador Retrievers can not express their A locus pattern since all of these dogs are solid-colored, either from dominant black (E/- K^B/K^B) or from recessive red (e/e).

Only puppies born with any combination of wild type or brindle alleles (k^br/k^br, k^br/k^y, or k^y/k^y) will express their pattern which is considered a mismark per the Labrador Retriever breed standards.

K Locus

Labrador Retrievers are K^B/K^B at the K locus.

Dominant black (E/- K^B/K^B) overrules the ability to produce phaeomelanin.

With eumelanin left as the only option, this causes a solid black (B/-) or brown (b/b) coat.

This makes A-Locus pattern expression impossible. Dominant black dogs can not produce yellow pigment, e.g. they can not have tan points or sable coats.

E Locus

Black or brown Labrador Retrievers can express eumelanin in their coat (E/-).

Some Labrador Retrievers have a melanistic mask (E^m) allele instead of the wild type (E). But this has no effect… You can’t see a black mask on a black dog or a brown mask on a brown dog anyway.

Last but not least, recessive red (e/e) removes the ability to produce black or brown hairs. This overrules the K locus and causes a solid red or yellow coat instead.

Yellow Labs are still either black or brown dogs, they just can’t express eumelanin in their coat.

Mismarks and Fancy Colors

These are some common non-standard colors in the Labrador Retriever:

Labrador Color Chart charcoal blue E B dd

Labrador Color Chart blue champagne place holder

Brown-based yellow dogs (b/b e/e) or “Dudley” Labradors are not a standard coloration per the AKC standard. The FCI does not seem to mind as much.

In rare cases, Labrador Retrievers have A locus-patterned puppies (E/- k^y/k^y or k^br/-). The most common mismark is black and tan (a^t), but sable (A^y) and agouti (a^w) also occur at low frequencies^[3].

Interestingly, recessive black (E/- k^y/k^y or k^br/- a/a) is also a possibility in Labrador Retrievers. But these dogs would look solid black or brown and therefore might go unnoticed.

In color-bred lines, Labrador Retrievers also come with pigment dilution (d/d):

Diluted black pigment (B/- d/d) or “blue” is called “charcoal“.

Diluted brown pigment (b/b d/d) or lilac is called “silver“.

Diluted eumelanin (d/d) in yellow dogs (e/e) is called “champagne“.

K^B/K^B
- E/-
  - B/-
    - d/d
      - "charcoal"
  - b/b
    - d/d
      - "silver"
- e/e
  - B/-
    - d/d
      - "champagne"
  - b/b
    - d/d
      - "champagne"

Charcoal

A dog with diluted black pigment (B/- d/d) and dominant black (K^B/-) will have a solid blue coat.

In Labradors, this is called “charcoal“.

E LOCUS	K LOCUS	B LOCUS	D LOCUS
E/E	K^B/K^B	B/B	d/d
E/E	K^B/K^B	B/b	d/d
E/e	K^B/K^B	B/B	d/d
E/e	K^B/K^B	B/b	d/d

Silver

A dog with diluted liver pigment (b/b d/d) and dominant black (K^B/-) will have a solid lilac coat.

In Labradors, this is called “silver“.

E LOCUS	K LOCUS	B LOCUS	D LOCUS
E/E	K^B/K^B	b/b	d/d
E/e	K^B/K^B	b/b	d/d

Champagne

A dog with diluted pigment (d/d) and recessive red (e/e) will have a solid yellow coat, often a notch lighter than in non-diluted yellows.

But his kind and nose pigment will be blue (B/ d/d) or lilac (b/b d/d) and he will have lighter eyes.

In Labradors, this is called “champagne“.

E LOCUS	K LOCUS	B LOCUS	D LOCUS
e/e	K^B/K^B	B/B	d/d
e/e	K^B/K^B	B/b	d/d
e/e	K^B/K^B	b/b	d/d

Patterned Coat

Labradors might express their A locus pattern (sable A^y, agouti a^w, most commonly black and tan a^t) if they get a wild type (k^y) or brindle (k^br) allele from each of their parents.

E LOCUS	K LOCUS
E/E	k^br/k^br
E/E	k^br/k^y
E/E	k^y/k^y
E/e	k^br/k^br
E/e	k^br/k^y
E/e	k^y/k^y

Learn More

Links

[1] American Kennel Club (AKC): Official Standard for the Afghan Hound (pdf)

[2] Fédération Cynologique Internationale (FCI): Afghan Hound Breed Standard (pdf)

[3] 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

Steffi

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.

coatsandcolors.com

K^B/K^B dom. black	E/- normal	e/e recessive red
B/- black	black	black-based yellow
b/b brown	brown, chocolate, liver	brown-based yellow,“Dudley”

K^B/K^B dom. black	E/- normal	e/e recessive red
B/- d/d diluted black	blue, “charcoal”	blue-based yellow, “champagne”
b/b d/d diluted brown	lilac, “silver”	lilac-based yellow, “champagne”