Blue Eyes VS Brown Eyes
 |
|
|
| I don't really have an answer for this, but I would have to guess that there isn't a difference. I would assume that the pigmentation in the dog's eye would be similar to that of any creature and dependent more on genetics than color.
I could be wrong here, though. |
* Capt. Obvious Danger wrote: I don't really have an answer for this, but I would have to guess that there isn't a difference. I would assume that the pigmentation in the dog's eye would be similar to that of any creature and dependent more on genetics than color.
I agree. You can have 2 blue, 2 brown or one of each. Lots of choices, go with what you like! We will have 2 brown always here, as Todd is freaked out by animals with blue eyes. 
good thing I have 2 brown eyes.....  |
| I have one with 2 brown eyes and one that has a blue and a brown eye.
My sister's OES has 2 blue eyes that are perfectly lined in black. They are beautiful but I must admit, I am partial to brown eyes. |
| Kristine might know if there's anything on eye color and illness in sheepies.
I havent read anywhere that there is a connection, but it is possible in theory. Each chromosome has lots of genes on it so there can be connections between things that seem unrelated to us. For example white cats with blue eyes are often deaf. The gene for deafness is connected with the gene for white hair and blue eyes. Also in humans fair skin, blue eyes and red hair are often seen together for the same reason. Its not an always scenario in these cases just an often. |
The only thing I've heard is blue eyed whiteheads have a higher incidence of deafness. All mine have 2 brown except Gabriel and his blue eye is kind of freaky  |
bestdogsx4 wrote: The only thing I've heard is blue eyed whiteheads have a higher incidence of deafness. All mine have 2 brown except Gabriel and his blue eye is kind of freaky
Yes, very true. Though blue-eyed, whiteheaded dogs need not be deaf and dark eyed dogs can be, relatively speaking, you see deafness more frequently in the former, as well as dogs who are heavily white-factored. This makes sense in that congenital deafness in OES is tied to lack of pigmentation in a critical part of the ear. The less pigmentation a dog has in general, the greater the chance that it's going to be missing there as well, I guess. The mode of inheritance isn't fully understood, which is why all we can do is do phenotype screening and not breed any dog who is uni- or bilateral deaf, because they have a higher rate of producing deafness. Unfortunately that's not a surefire way of not producing a deaf dog because two hearing dogs can produce deafness as well. It's just less likely. Blue eyes in and of themselves should not be cause to suspect deafness and they are perfectly acceptable in the breed. That said, I too find them rather freaky.  
Kristine |
got sheep wrote: I agree. You can have 2 blue, 2 brown or one of each. Lots of choices, go with what you like!
We will have 2 brown always here, as Todd is freaked out by animals with blue eyes. I'm freaked out by yellow eyes! On cats, fine, but on dogs, no way. I keep my distance from Weimeraners. The devil is in those eyes. |
you would rethink that if you knew our cat  |
| I love blue eyes on dogs. My Aussie, China, has blue eyes and i think they look so cool. Violet is wall-eyed so one blue/one brown/snow top and I love her blue eye. My other Aussie, Asia, has wonderful chocolate brown eyes which are so beautiful. The cat, Pearl, has huge green eyes. So a little bit of everything here. |
Just wanted to freak everybody out!!!! |
Donner's Mom wrote: Just wanted to freak everybody out!!!! Along the same vein... how could this big lug freak you out?  |
| I must say they are both so cute. |
| I was kidding about the freak you out blue eyed dog!!
He actually is deaf and if you look at the gal on my Avatar that has ALOT of white, she is deaf too. Honestly, I prefer brown eyes but, my babies blue eyes touch my heart!  |
| I've only had 2 sheepies in life thus far and both had the same markings - being largely whait on top. Ironically the first one had both brown eyes...no problems. My current baby boy has one blue & one brown and he's got an allergy issue that could be considered a major medical issue.
So right now I'd say blue makes a difference but I'm only 1 and 1. =) Sidenote: I like the brown eyes but love the blue eyes. I originally wanted one w/ blue eyes and not a mix bc they freak me out in pictures but I just fell for my boy. His blue eye does freak my sister out. I'd like to get another sometime, so my boy can have a friend...maybe w/ both blue eyes. =D |
| Having a dog with a blue eye is not relevant to allergies, there is plenty with two brown eyes as well that suffer from food or airborne allergies as well. Not eye colour related at all or if they have full white head either.
And just to add to the freak out 
I'm lovin the two blues for a change  |
| Aw that's awesome! I love the brown eyes but the blue eyes are just so gorgeous.
Who are we kidding - I'm a sucker for them all. |
lisaoes wrote: Having a dog with a blue eye is not relevant to allergies, there is plenty with two brown eyes as well that suffer from food or airborne allergies as well. Not eye colour related at all or if they have full white head either.
And just to add to the freak out I'm lovin the two blues for a change He is the hottest boy ever!!!! Okay outside of my blue eyed boy!LOL |
Mad Dog wrote: Yes, very true. Though blue-eyed, whiteheaded dogs need not be deaf and dark eyed dogs can be, relatively speaking, you see deafness more frequently in the former, as well as dogs who are heavily white-factored. This makes sense in that congenital deafness in OES is tied to lack of pigmentation in a critical part of the ear. The less pigmentation a dog has in general, the greater the chance that it's going to be missing there as well, I guess.
This is really interesting! I had no idea that was the reason, I always just assumed it was a case of bad breeding where the particular breeders were fond of whiteheads. We suspect our blue-eyed Rudie is hard of hearing, although honestly he might just be really stubborn. We'd like to do the BAER test eventually. |
Donner's Mom wrote: Just wanted to freak everybody out!!!! HAHA! Look at his little face, he DOES look like he just got into trouble! |
Lil Walty wrote: We suspect our blue-eyed Rudie is hard of hearing, although honestly he might just be really stubborn. We'd like to do the BAER test eventually.
Heather, Bad breeding is sort of a relative thing in this case. You can BAER test both parents and their hearing can be fine and you can still end up with a deaf pup. Which is what makes me suspect (among other things, like frequency of deafness) that the mode of inheritance is probably polygenic (multiple genes involved), much like hips. You can breed two OFA excellent dogs and, though it's not terribly likely, you could still get really unlucky and produce a dysplastic pup. As for the white heads. Thanks to our friend the Dulux dog, white heads became popular and sort of "standard" for the breed among the less educated pet owner. I'm not sure how blue eyes got dragged into it. Show breeders too, probably favor white heads to some degree. Why? Because they are easier to show. They may also favor things like a nice shawl (the white down the neck and chest and to varying degrees the shoulder of the dog. Why? A white head tends to give the illusion of a larger head (compared to a dog with head markings) How much shawl a dog has can effect how the neck appears, the shortness (or not) of back, even the peception of angulation (standing still) to some extent. Judges who know the breed are not fooled by any of this and because most breeders left in the breed are very small (breed very little, very infrequently and keep very few dogs) they typically can't afford to pass up on a nice dog because it has dark markings on its head (fully permissible per the breed standard) But all else being equal, it's just plain easier to finish a dog that looks a certain way (symmetry of markings also make a difference in how the dog looks when it moves - none of this affects the basic structure, but a judge has only so much time to pick his or her dogs and so a dog who visually looks the part more readily is going to stick out more). So over time the breed has overall probably shifted towards more white, i.e. less pigmentation. Mind you, the UK breed standard no longer permits splashes or "flashes" of white in the solid color of the dog. And if I'm not mistaken they also expect full pigmentation around the eyes. This has almost certainly resulted in a population of dogs that has better overall pigmentation. Do they also have fewer deaf dogs in the population? We don't have the data on that. Yet. But it's an interesting question. Now, few show breeders select for blue eyes even though it is fully permissable. They certainly won't overlook a nice dog just because he has blue eyes BUT, unlike the more profit motivated breeder who caters to the pet purchasing population, shall we say, they don't specifically select for it. All we know is that there is a disproportionate number of deaf blue-eyed, whiteheaded dogs (in the US at least). But there may be other factors at play. As for Rudy, selective hearing may turn out to be his issue But if you ever want to know for sure you can, you can take him to Dr Glen Mayer at Abell Animal Hospital, Chicago 773-631-6727
At least I presume he's still doing them. He's done all of my dogs. Mind you, he may piss and moan a bit about big hairy dogs whose ears he can't find and mutter that it's easier to test puppies. Though I'm not that's so very true because when I had Mad's litter done - try hitting the road with eight 8 week old puppies on your own - never again - Dawn's Chewie reared back when he stuck the little needles in his ears and almost took the VERY EXPENSIVE testing equipment with him  (Good thing he went to Dawn because he didn't start out as Mr Perfect! )
Rudy's really interesting. You'd think Basset, because of the short legs, but he is not a short dog. It's just the proportions. Looking at his head and depth of body, you think Saint. Well, basset/saint could explain the size. OES/Basset alone would almost certainly have been a less tall dog. And then you have to ask where did the blue eyes come from???? Probably OES as well given the coat and eyes taken together.
He's the most interesting mix I've ever seen. One of those so unlikely you think Disney played some role in his creation. And I don't mean that in a bad way. Maybe he should consider a career in show business? SOMEBODY could make a Disney movie starring this dog that would knock people's socks off. Kristine |
| RE the blue eyes and bassets:
We are seeing blue eyed bassets showing up in our basset rescue. My friend Melissa in Duluth is fostering one now who has one blue and one brown. And he looks to be 100% basset. Our rescue serves the MN/WI and northern Il areas. Interesting.... here is a link to Barney's adoption page - there is one picture: http://www.bassetbuddiesrescue.org/bass ... rney-1362/ |
| The plot thickens....
How'd blue eyes end up in the breed (bassets)? Kristine |
Didn't find exactly what you're looking for? Search again here:
Custom Search
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|