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Originally Posted by Olivier Altesse was black and tan until she was 2 years old and then she changed for a wonderful dark steel blue ans splendid golden head . I really thought she was going to be black and tan all her life . What mother nature can do ? |
The breeder I got my puppy from says that they should stay a black and tan/gold color and that when they are 1 1/2 years old, they will turn the desirable steel blue. He disagrees about the grey heads. He says this leads to the silver blue that is undesirable.
I asked about the silky coat, and he says that when they turn to steel blue, the silkiness of the coat comes out.
Here is the AKC website he gave me.
http://www.akc.org/breeds/yorkshire_terrier/index.cfm
Here's the part about the colors.
Colors
Puppies are born black and tan and are normally darker in body color, showing an intermingling of black hair in the tan until they are matured. Color of hair on body and richness of tan on head and legs are of prime importance in adult dogs, to which the following color requirements apply:
Blue: Is a dark steel-blue, not a silver-blue and not mingled with fawn, bronzy or black hairs.
Tan: All tan hair is darker at the roots than in the middle, shading to still lighter tan at the tips. There should be no sooty or black hair intermingled with any of the tan.