PomWorld - The global Pomeranian eMagazine - April 2013

www.pomworld.com

Volume 2, April 2013

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POMWORLD.COM

FRONT COVER POMERANIAN & Pages 2 & 3

Welcome to the third edition of

Bella Pomeranian

the Global Pomeranian magazine.

The Pombassador of Southern

Published online and free to all

California Pomeranian Rescue.

Pomeranian lovers.

Read Bella’s story on page 12.

“Thank you “to Pomeranian lovers who have submitted Pomeranian items.

Submission of Show news and items of interest are appreciated.

Our aim is for the magazine to appeal to all Pomeranian lovers.

ADVERTISING Front Cover (includes Front cover & full page double page spread on pages 2 and 3, i.e. the first 2 pages) $180.00.

Back Cover - $60.00 Full Page - $50.00 Double Page - $80.00 Kennel & Classified Directory $30.00 for 3 issues.

CONTACT DETAILS poms@poms.cc www.pomworld.com

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Table of Contents Bella Pomeranian ............................................................................................................. 1 Bella Pomeranian ............................................................................................................. 2 Bella Pomeranian ............................................................................................................. 3 Contact Details ................................................................................................................. 4 Table of Contents ............................................................................................................. 5 Pomeranian Alopecia X Survey ................................................................................. 6 & 7 Canton Pomeranians ........................................................................................................ 8 TinyBears Poms ................................................................................................................ 9 Beau James Pomeranians .............................................................................................. 10 Oltenia Pomeranians ...................................................................................................... 11 Bella Pomeranian to the Rescue ........................................................................... 12 to 14 The Agouti Pattern Gene ....................................................................................... 15 to 25 Dochlaggie Pomeranians ....................................................................................... 26 to 29 Canine Colour Dilution Alopecia............................................................................ 30 & 31 Far North Queensland or Bust ............................................................................... 32 to 36 Pomeranian Grooming .................................................................................................... 37 Crufts 2013 ............................................................................................................ 38 to 40 Jordysong Pomeranians………………………………………………………………………………………41 Tooshay Pomeranians ........................................................................................... 42 to 45 Queen Poms .................................................................................................................... 46 Pomeranian Health ......................................................................................................... 47 Pomeranian Guide Book ........................................................................................ 48 & 49 Points of the Pomeranian ............................................................................................... 50 When is it time to quit ? ................................................................................................. 51 If you get a “lemon” – make Lemonade ! ............................................................... 52 & 53 American Pomeranian Club 94th National Specialty ............................................ 54 to 56 Pomeranians at Sydney Royal 2013 ...................................................................... 57 to 61 PomTeddy Pomeranians ........................................................................................ 62 & 63 Tinytots Pomeranians ........................................................................................... 64 & 65 White Pomeranians................................................................................................ 66 & 67 Coleisha Pomeranians ........................................................................................... 68 to 71 PuppyCage.Com.............................................................................................................. 72 DoggieDinners.Com ........................................................................................................ 73 PetLeads.Com................................................................................................................. 74 Pet collectables.............................................................................................................. 75 Canine Boutique ............................................................................................................. 76 Banner Advertising ................................................................................................ 77 to 78 Pomeranian Grooming .................................................................................................... 79 Kennel Directory & Classifieds ............................................................................. 80 to 83

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https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/PCOC-Alopecia-X Alopecia X (sometimes called black skin disease: “BSD”) is a ‘hairloss’ condition which has been known to affect several of the Nordic breeds, and is a prominent, apparently genetic coat defect in the Pomeranian. There are a variety of theories as to cause, progression and associated health defects related to Alopecia X and much confusion surrounds this condition in the breeding community.

However, there is little solid scientific evidence to support or disprove many of the theories that are being argued by those in the breed. No matter which of the many “sides” and “groups” you belong to, it is difficult to argue the seriousness of this coat issue, for which we really have a very poor understanding. Donations to the genome mapping and/or Alopecia X research projects will aid significantly in our understanding of the condition and lead to a genetic test to identify carriers and dogs that will become affected in the future. All Pomeranian breeders and pet owners have a vested interest in supporting the research to aid our breed and are encouraged to make a donation to support research into Alopecia X, including the genome mapping project: http://www.americanpomeranianclub.org/health/donate.htm. Solid support of the research will be a clear indication of our collective commitment to combating this coat defect in our breed. The list of current donors can be seen here: http://www.americanpomeranianclub.org/health/donors.htm.

The goal of the research is to gain an understanding of the genetic defect that causes Alopecia X and a test to identify carrier and affected dogs early so that appropriate breeding decisions can be made to avoid producing bald dogs. This goal should be attainable in time with a great amount of commitment on the part of both the Pomeranian and scientific communities. There have been many successes in developing genetic tests for canine diseases, as well as diseases in other species. However, in the mean time we cannot simply sit by and wait for a test. There have been many observations and theories on how we can identify suspect dogs without a test. But despite the many theories, there really have been no properly controlled studies to look at coat characteristics or other factors and relate them to later Alopecia X status. Additionally, there have been a lot of statements that Alopecia X dogs suffer severe health issues, yet conversely the veterinary community as a whole has reported that Alopecic Poms do not suffer health defects more than their coated counterparts.

In order to shed some light on these and other issues, we have developed an extensive Pomeranian Alopecia X Survey. This survey launched near the beginning of 2013. Some breeders previously entered data in the OFFA Pomeranian Health Survey, which was a general health survey. At last check, that survey suggested that the incidence of Alopecia in Poms is around 16%, with more young males than females developing coat loss, but in older

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Poms the rates appear to equalize. Currently this is the only satisfactory data available on the incidence of the condition and therefore it was a very useful survey. Unfortunately it doesn’t ask a sufficient number of detailed questions about Alopecia X specifically, and the database doesn’t allow some of the very useful analyses that we would like to do in order to learn more about this coat loss problem. This new survey is a more comprehensive effort focused on this one issue, and will provide a greater range of options to analyze the resultant data.

Anyone who owns or has owned in the past a purebred Pomeranian is asked to complete the survey, and do so separately for EACH dog that they own, have owned or produced. Pets and show dogs are equally valid for entry into the survey, as both groups suffer Alopecia X. Unaffected dogs are just as important as affected dogs if we are to get accurate statistics on the incidence of this coat issue. Some owners entering data in the survey may not know or remember every detail for every dog as some have owned or produced dogs over years or even decades. Most questions include “unsure”, “don’t know” or “don’t remember” as options. It is best to use this option rather than guessing if you are not sure. It is also clear that the sheer number of dogs that some in the community have produced or owned over their time as breeders would make the survey a very large time commitment. Thus breeders are encouraged to try to take a representative cross-section of the dogs over your time as a breeder or Pom owner, both coat-loss dogs and coated dogs, so that as accurate as possible data can be derived from the survey. And then as owners have spare time here and there, enter additional dogs until they have completed the survey for each dog owned and/or produced.

The survey can be filled out anonymously if that is desired, but there are optional fields where you can choose to include your name as well as the name of the dog you are entering in case of the need to contact you for clarification or if you want to contact the survey administrator to update the information that you have previously entered. You can place your name and e-mail address in the name field. The data will be collected in a database where the individual records will never be made public. Once sufficient responses have been collected to give significant conclusions, the aggregate data will be released to the community in a manner that will not identify any respondent or any specific dog.

Great effort has been made to produce a survey that is fair and unbiased in any way, not favouring any particular view, including the ability to complete the survey anonymously if participants are concerned about their data being associated with them. The goal of the survey is to find out the facts about Alopecia X, no matter what they ultimately tell us, and the results will be analyzed in a scientific, unbiased fashion. There are some controls that have been implemented to avoid large numbers of fraudulent entries in the case that someone attempts to skew the results in favour of any one particular opinion, however it is hoped that this won’t be needed.

We hope that you will take the time to complete the survey for all of your dogs (both coated and coat-loss Pomeranians) and encourage others, both breeders and pet owners alike, to do so as well. With sufficient responses, this survey has the potential to greatly impact our understanding of this coat problem and lead to validated visual clues to dogs that will suffer coat loss in the future, and also indicate which visual characteristics do not correlate with future coat loss.

The survey can be accessed via the Pomeranian Club of Canada or American Pomeranian Club websites, or directly at the following address:

https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/PCOC-Alopecia-X Participants will need to navigate to this site separately for each dog they wish to enter. Please share this link as widely as possible.

Thank-you in advance for your commitment to this process. We have a real opportunity here to make a significant contribution to our understanding of Alopecia X with your help. Please feel free to contact me (paul@tinybearpoms.com) if you have any concerns or questions about the survey.

Thank-you for your support,

Dr. Paul D. W. Eckford, Ph.D. (Biochemistry), B.Sc. (Hons. Biochemistry)

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BELLA POMERANIAN TO THE RESCUE! Bella was born August 31, 2004, bred by Linda Pelz of Dreamweaver Poms in Hewitt, Texas, to sire AM/CN/INT CH. Dreamweavers Billy the Kid (Billy) and dam Dreamweavers Medicine Woman (Mikayla). Officially, she is Dreamweavers Belle Starr, CGC but everyone knows and loves her on Facebook and television as Bella Pomeranian, the Pombassador of Southern California Pomeranian Rescue and star of the nationally aired 2011 1-800PetMeds television commercial. Her sire was the coverdog of the December 2004 issue of The Pom Reader. Predicted as too small for the show ring, Bella was sold as a pet and I just happened to be the lucky one to get her when she was five months old. Bella has never been bred or shown.

Bella's story is one that speaks to those dealing with coat loss, yet with the accomplishment of great things for Rescue and television stardom in spite of it.

Following the passing of one of our other Poms in 2010, I began to search online for another Pom as I had when I found Bella. Discovering Southern California Pomeranian Rescue , it was so easy to view their adoptable pets on their Facebook page (by the same name) and enter the adoption process with an online application. Soon my husband Tommy and I were bringing home handsome little Buddy, age unknown and toothless from neglect by his previous situation. We became fans of this rescue.

SCPR was created in 2008 by members of the City of Angels Pomeranian Club (COAPC) who felt a strong need to address the plight of Pomeranians that end up on the streets, abandoned or lost, and to provide an alternative for owners who can no longer care for their Poms. As a small regional rescue, SCPR relies on the valuable connections that have been established over the years with the city and county animal shelters, other rescue groups and the many private individuals who know of SCPR to keep us informed of Poms in need of help.

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Following the adoption of Buddy in 2010, I wanted to get more involved with the rescue as a volunteer.

SCPR had organized the rescue of 11 Poms that were being released from a Midwestern puppymill, and funds were needed to pay for their transport from Iowa to California. I quickly made 20 fleece blankets to donate for the rescue to sell as a fundraiser; the blankets became so popular that they were dubbed "Bella Blankies" and, with that, Bella was granted the title of "Pombassador" of Southern California Pomeranian Rescue. As of this writing almost three years later, Bella is credited with over 600 blankets. They are promoted on Bella Pomeranian's facebook page and on both SCPR's website and facebook page.

What does it take for a small regional rescue to become successful? Two elements already discussed above are establishing relationships and networking. Get involved with an established rescue to gain some practical experience first, learn from their best practices and adapt them for your community. Create a context in which fanciers (breeders) and those adverse to breeding clearly understand that there is a difference between the responsible preservation of the breed standard and irresponsible breeding. You will need to establish channels for taking dogs in, a means of caring for them while they are in rescue, ways in which to bring an audience to them via adoption events, facebook, twitter, and the web.

Fundraising efforts can be creative like Bella's Bella Blankies and her 2013 Bella Pomeranian Calendar, or as simple as a donations jar on the table.

Fundraising is critically important, because the adoption fees and donation jars alone will never be enough to cover expenses.

Other essential elements required by a successful rescue are volunteers and foster homes, and it is recommended that they be screened as you would a potential adopter of a dog. SCPR relies on a personalized foster system, where dogs are cared for by other Pomeranian lovers in their homes, and has used kennels only as a temporary measure when there was no other alternative. Dogs should not be left to languish in kennels and are meant to be in homes as part of a family. Abandon idyllic notions of what a good home looks like, and accept the fact that good pet parents can and do come in all sizes, shapes and colors just like Pomeranians do. Through your best practices research, compare the Volunteer, Adoption, Foster, and Surrender agreements that you can download from various other rescue organizations on the internet to use as models to formulate your own set of documents.

Ask other rescue operators to share with you their mistakes and oversights, and what they felt needed to be changed in order to avoid unforseen problems. Volunteers may have skills that you can draw upon: knowledge of the law, public relations, veterinary experience, website or graphic design, advertising and branding, fundraising;

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volunteers may also be connected to community icons or celebrities.

Utilizing all points of contact that you have will be important to draw the public's attention and increase the awareness of your rescue.

Rescue is not always easy on the heart, but there are enough rewarding moments in it that make it all so very worth the effort.

There are so many times that I have gone to the shelter to bring to safety some poor little wretch of a dog, barely recognizable as a Pom after so many days on concrete floors, perhaps even after having spent weeks on the streets. They are scared and traumatized, and they seem to know what happens to dogs at those places. There is no reward greater than to see them blossom after a bath, good food, a vet check. Their eyes regain sparkle, the step quickens, the coat begins to shine and tails rise high over their backs again. So many people tell me that they could never give up a dog after going through all of that. It is never easy to give them up, but when that dog goes to his new forever home, I get to go save another one, and then another after that. Bella helps to keep my focus.

Bella became a television celebrity when I entered her picture in a facebook contest sponsored by America's largest pet pharmacy, 1-800-PetMeds, in a search for The Next PetMeds Pet TV Star. There were over 3500 entries, and at the end of a two week voting period Bella was announced as the Grand Prize Winner. Here is Bella on the set of the taping with the lovely actress Kourtney Hansen. The commercial began aired first on October 4, 2011 and continued nationally until January of 2013. It can still be seen on YouTube and the link was given in the first paragraph above. The photo album from the trip to tape the commercial can be found on Bella's facebook page at this link: PetMeds Commercial Shoot. PetMeds has also allowed me to write a weekly blog for them about Bella's life and activities. The blog is written under Bella's name, reporting from her point of view. In all things, I try to use the spotlight of Bella's celebrity status to bring attention to the rescue and other areas of canine welfare that are important.

Bella's coat loss has not diminished her beauty, and she seems to know how to look at a camera and smile.

Her coat began to thin at the age of five, and by age six I began to dress her in cute little dresses with matching harnesses, collars, and leashes. Her coat does grow, but very unevenly. After trying things like melatonin, shampoos, skin treatments and nutritional supplements, I found that none worked sufficiently to restore her once full coat so those efforts and expenses have been abandoned in favor of a short scissor cut that we are calling "The Hello Kitty Cut." So we make the best of it and work with what we have.

I take Bella to work with me every day, and she attends nearly all of the SCPR adoption events. Bella and I attend several dog shows here in Southern California every year as well as support and volunteer with local breed clubs Meet the Breed booths. Bella's adventures can be followed on her PetMeds Blog. Some of her exciting adventures include a trip to the Hollywood Walk of Fame in search of famous dogs with their own stars, attending a doggie fashion show in Palm Desert to raise funds for charity, going on a rescue mission, and learning how to comparison shop for the best dog foods. Bella has a fairly exciting life getting to go places, campaigning for ways to improve the lives of dogs that aren't as fortunate as she is, meeting and working with other important dog personalities who are also involved in fundraising for charities, and then blogging about her experiences.

Bella can be reached at bellapomeranian1@aol.com . by Deedee Townsend, ddtownsend@aol.com 14 PomWorld.Com. April, 2013

Introduction The shear breadth of colours and patterns possible in the domestic dog has fascinated breeders and scientists alike for hundreds of years. A virtual rainbow of colours from white to black, brown, grey, yellow, orange and even a near mauve colour can be coupled to a smorgasbord of patterns, including solids, patches, spots, ticks, and stripes. Every one of these possibilities is hereditary and defined by a complex interaction of the products of well over 20 colour and pattern genes in the domestic dog that can account for this incredible variety.

While some breeds have a fixed colour and pattern (e.g. the “wolf-sable� pattern of the Keeshond), others have a small array of allowable choices. The Pomeranian, however, has one of the largest complements of colour and pattern possibilities of all modern breeds, and provides an excellent platform for the understanding of how these complex genes give rise to the colours and patterns we see.

There are many genes that affect the colour of the pigment in the fur, while others affect its distribution.

By far the most prominent pattern gene in Pomeranians is Agouti, which controls the temporal (time controlled) and positional (ventral/dorsal) distribution of the two major types of pigment of the hair. Here we examine the various alleles (forms of the gene that produce specific traits) at Agouti, and the interactions with some other colour and pattern genes to produce many of the most common coat appearances in our breed, the Pomeranian.

Melanin—the pigment of the hair There are two types of melanin, the pigment in the hair and skin of dogs (as well as other animals). They are called pheomelanin and eumelanin. Pheomelanin comprises a certain molecular structure and gives the appearance of red, orange, yellow and cream colours in the coat. Eumelanin has a slightly different structure and appears black, brown, grey (blue) and a sort of lavender/lilac in the hair, nose leather, eye rims, lips, pads of the feet, etc., depending on the influence of a variety of genes (reviewed in (3)).

Eumelanin is produced by a series of enzymatic reactions acting on the amino acid tyrosine, by several enzymes. Pheomelanin is also produced from tyrosine, but via a different set of reactions, and only when certain enzymes are not active. Only eumelanin pigment is deposited in regions of the skin such as the nose, and therefore we never see a dog with an orange (pheomelanin) pigmented nose. Coats that lack any pheomelanin or eumelanin pigment will appear white, and skin that lacks eumelanin pigment will appear pink.

Hair pigment is produced in specialized cells call the melanocytes. They develop from a specialized tissue called the neural crest, which also gives rise to neurons, bone cells, muscle cells and other important cell types. During fetal development, the precursor cells to the melanocytes migrate from the neural crest outwards to the relevant regions of the skin and follicles where they will reside and function to pigment the animal (reviewed in (2)). Often the greater the distance the melanocyte precursor cells have to travel, the fewer that will make it there, and this can sometimes be seen as a decreased pigment intensity in the

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legs, belly, head, etc. compared to the trunk in some solid dogs, and is likely why some black dogs, for example, have white hairs on the bottoms of the feet.

Figure 1. Simplified schematic to describe the interaction of the Agouti signal peptide and -defensin with the Mc1r gene product in the production of eumelanin and pheomelanin in the coat. A) In the case of functional agouti alleles, the agouti signal peptide competes with the -defensin gene product for interaction with Mc1r. When the agouti antagonist is bound, eumelanin pigment production is inhibited and pheomelanin pigment is produced. Agouti alleles differ in the temporal or ventral-dorsal activity of the signal peptide to produce either regions of eumelanin coat and pheomelanin coat (black & tan) or switching between pheomelanin and eumelanin (wolf or sable coats). B) where Mc1r has suffered a loss-of-function mutation, eumelanin production is prevented and solely pheomelanin is produced in the coat (e/e clear orange) regardless of the genotype at agouti or -defensin (k). C) Where there is a functional Mc1r and the -defensin 103 allele is dominant (K), the -defensin protein binds to Mc1r with high affinity and the agouti signal peptide cannot bind, so regardless of the agouti allele present, the coat will be solid black. See (1,2) for more information on these processes.

Genetic control of pheomelanin/eumelanin pigmentation: the Agouti signal peptide Agouti is the term given to a series of alleles for a gene that defines the switching between eumelanin and pheomelanin in the coat. This switching can occur at different times during the growth of the hair to produce individual hairs with both pigments, or direct production of different pigments at different locations of the body, for example to produce eumelanin on the back and pheomelanin on the stomach of one particular animal.

The Agouti gene was identified in dogs and shown to be involved in pigment switching in 2004 (4). The gene encodes a 131 amino acid protein that is secreted from cells (4) and interacts with the Mc1r (E) protein (Figure 1; (5)). Little published theories in 1957 (6) regarding the genes involved in canine colour genetics, but the work contained only observations of dogs and their offspring rather than DNA studies of 16 PomWorld.Com. April, 2013

the genes involved. However, some of his hypotheses have proven correct. Little predicted that the agouti locus is made up of 4 possible alleles, As, producing solid colour, ay producing fawn/sable, aw for wildtype and at producing black & tan. Willis expanded upon this, adding ag saddle tan and a, recessive black (7).

Other researchers used different terms, but this remains the most common classification.

It is important to remember that, although we use letters to designate different alleles of a gene, these alleles actually exist as genetic sequences at the location for the agouti gene in the canine chromosome, and each allele varies from another by specific genetic changes. The gene sequences produce protein products that have specific functions in the cell, and genetic changes in the gene itself, or the region of DNA nearby that regulates the gene, causes specific molecular changes that account for the differences in what we see in the coat visually.

The order of dominance of the agouti alleles has been previously described as:

A s > ay > a w > at = ag > a Meaning, As is dominant over all of the alleles, ay is dominant over all alleles except As, for example, and a is recessive to all of the alleles.

It is clear from 200 years of scientific research, that animals have two complete copies of each chromosome (though males have one copy of X and one of Y), and therefore normally have two copies of each gene, one inherited from the mother and one from the father. So in the hierarchy listed above, it is suggested that a dog that inherits ay from one parent and at from the other, for example, will display the phenotype of an ay sable.

Recent work on the molecular basis of colour/pattern genetics has shown that, contrary to the above list, in fact there is no As allele that produces dominant solid colour at the agouti locus. Rather, dominant solid eumelanin coats are produced by a mutation in the -defensin 103 ( K ) gene, which produces a protein that binds to Mc1r with high affinity and prevents the agouti signal peptide from binding and allowing production of pheomelanin (Figure 1C). Therefore only eumelanin is produced in the coat (1). Likewise, ag saddle phenotype has been recently shown in five different breeds to be caused by the at allele rather than being separate agouti allele (8). Therefore, an updated order of dominance for the agouti series is:

a y > a w > at > a Considerable mis-information on colour and pattern genetics persists online, and one may find many references to As and ag, despite the overwhelming evidence that these proposed alleles in fact do not exist.

The ay Sable Sable (also termed “fawn” in many breeds) is the most common coat pattern in modern Pomeranians.

Among the agouti alleles, it appears to be dominant, meaning that a dog possessing one copy of ay and one of any other allele will be a sable, assuming no other gene (such as e/e “clear orange” solid pheomelanin or -defensin (K) dominant solid eumelanin) is controlling the coat pattern. The ay allele is thought to be a mutant version of agouti, despite being dominant and more common than the non-mutant wildtype allele.

The sable Pomeranian is primarily a red, orange, or cream coated dog, with some solid black hairs spread throughout the coat and some hairs that have the red, orange or cream pheomelanin pigment near the base and black eumelanin pigment at the tip. With the ay agouti allele, there is temporal (time-based) 17 PomWorld.Com. April, 2013

control of the pigment type, and the pigment type switches from pheomelanin to eumelanin during production of the individual hair strands. The typical eumelanin tipping can be seen in Figure 2A, and is a result of the agouti signal peptide ay binding to Mc1r for a period of time and then coming back off at a later time (Figure 1A). The ay allele does not control the base colour of the coat (red, orange, cream pheomelanin) or the colour (black, brown, etc.) of the eumelanin tipping, rather just the distribution of these two pigments. The specific colours are controlled by other genes.

There is a variable extent of sabling in the coat of individual Pomeranians, from barely any black in the coat to dogs where most of the coat has black tips. Some have speculated that heterozygous dogs with the ay/at phenotype have heavy sabling, while homozygous ay/ay dogs tend to be less heavily sabled. This would indicate that at is semi ‘co-dominant’ with ay (i.e. it has some affect on what the sabling looks like), rather than being completely recessive. We have observed this for one dog whose father was a black & tan, and whose mother was an orange sable. This heavily sabled female produced two females when bred to a lightly sabled stud, one of which was heavily sabled and one was lightly sabled. The heavily sabled daughter has recently produced black & tan when bred to a stud of this pattern, indicating that her mother passed the at allele and she received ay from her father. It will be interesting to see if her lightly sabled sister will produce black & tan when bred to an at/at stud. However, recent unpublished work has suggested other genes may in fact control the extent of sabling in ay dogs (http://homepage.usask.ca/~schmutz/agouti.html), and this feature may not relate to the presence of the at allele.

The aw Wildtype Pattern Most wolves, probably all coyotes and many other wild animals display a banded pattern in the coat, with bands of alternating eumelanin and pheomelanin pigment along the length of the individual hair strands (9). Visually this difference from the ay tipping pattern may be distinguished only upon close examination of the coat (Figure 2B and C, compare with A). The aw, or wildtype variant of the agouti signal peptide binds and is released from the Mc1R receptor more than once over the course of the hair elongation phase to produce the alternating pigment pattern (Figure 1A).

The aw allele is thought to be the normal (non-mutated) version of the agouti gene, given its

Figure 2. Sabling and banding patterns in Pomeranian coats. A) Black tipping (sabling) on an orange coat of Tinybear’s Premier y t Bella, who is a /a at agouti. Owned by Dr. Paul Eckford and Rick Rose, TinyBear Pomeranians. B) and C) The wildtype w eumelanin-pheomelanin-eumelanin banding pattern of the a “wolf sable” Ch Pondside Wings of an Angel CD CGN RN RA RE RAE1 (W-FD/MF), owned and bred by Roberta Malott, Pondside Toys.

prevalence in wild animals (9). The aw banding pattern is common in domestic dog breeds such as Siberian Huskies, however, it is rare in Pomeranians and many other breeds. In German Shephard dogs, the aw banding pattern is one common coat variant, though in this breed, confusingly, it is termed “sable” rather than “wolf”. The German Shepherd dog “sable” pattern is the banding pattern described here is and 18 PomWorld.Com. April, 2013

completely different than the sable pattern we have described above, which is due to the ay mutant agouti allele. The Keeshond, a close Spitz relative of the Pomeranian, is another breed exhibiting the Agouti wildtype banding pattern, and in fact is virtually restricted for the aw allele, given that it is the only coat pattern recognized in the breed standard.

In the Pomeranian, the rare aw agouti allele has been shown to exist, and recently a genetic test has been developed that may allow breeders to determine which agouti alleles are present in their dog. Several testing facilities can detect Agouti variants in blood samples or non-invasive buccal cheek swabs for a nominal fee. In Pomeranians, the coat pattern is termed “wolf sable” though in order to minimize confusion and avoid the incorrect implication that this is a common ay sable type pattern, we prefer simply the term “wolf”.

We would be very interested in seeing more photos of “wolf sable” dogs and the corresponding genetic testing to indicate if the majority of these dogs are in fact a y or aw. If you have Pomeranians that appear to be wolf sable and would like to share your test results or find out where you can have your dogs tested, please contact Dr. Paul Eckford, paul@tinybearpoms.com.

Most Pomeranian breed standards describe a “wolf sable” as a dog with a light grey undercoat and a deeper shade of steel grey guard hairs ending in black tippings, but no cream or orange cast to the base color (Figure 3D). Dogs considered visually to be a wolf typically have light silver-cream legs and bellies, but dark silver-grey-black coats, with or without a strong black muzzle. There is considerable variation in the colouring of dogs claimed to be “wolf sable”. We believe that some such dogs are in fact cream sable ay dogs, with heavy sabling, which would give the dogs light legs and underbelly, but dark guard hairs over much of the upper body. Whether the majority of “wolf sable” Pomeranians are in fact non-ay, remains to be seen, though we have seen test results for some “wolf sable” dogs that do indeed test aw, non-ay.

Given the presumed dominance hierarchy shown above, any dog possessing one ay allele would be described as a sable, while any dog with an aw/aw, aw/at or aw/a genotype would be a true “wolf sable”.

Recall from above that the agouti alleles do not appear to control the colour of the eumelanin and pheomelanin pigments, only their distribution. Therefore, we believe that in fact it is possible for one to have orange-based wolf sable dogs as well as the light silvery wolf sables described in our standard. It may be the case that some orange wolf sable dogs with the aw banding pattern exist and are simply thought to be standard sable dogs. It would be interesting to test any “orange sable” dogs that possess a banding pattern throughout the coat rather than the standard black tipping to determine the Agouti genotype.

Secondary genes likely control the intensity of the pheomelanin (orange, etc.) coat pigment in both sable dogs and the wolf sable. These genes remain to be identified. Little (6) suggested the existence of a “Colour” C gene. This C gene was thought to exist in several allelic forms and, while having little effect on eumelanin, would be responsible for the dilution of pheomelanin pigment from orange to cream, a pale silvery colour, or even white with a certain allele, Cch, called the Chinchilla allele. In laboratory rodents, indeed the gene tyrosinase (TYR) has been identified, that is associated with albinism or a loss of pigment intensity when mutated (10). This is the gene typically associated with Little’s C identifier. However in dogs, no mutation in the tyrosinase “C” gene has thus far been correlated with lightened pheomelanin coat colour, such as cream, despite a fairly exhaustive investigation (11). A membrane protein called SLC45A appears to be responsible for colour dilution in horses and affects pheomelanin and eumelanin differently (12). Like the case with tyrosinase, no genetic changes in this gene could be correlated with lightened coat colours in dogs (11). Therefore, the “C” gene does not seem to be related to lightened coat colours in cream, wolf and other dogs. An intensity, I gene has also been proposed that can decrease the intensity of the pigment from orange to cream. While one or more genes that can cause this effect must certainly exist to explain the coat colour differences we observe, it remains to be identified. For now, it appears that we can identify a true wolf Pomeranian by their agouti allele, even if we can’t explain the lightened coat intensity called for in our standard.

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The at Dorsal Eumelanin & Ventral Pheomelanin Pattern The second most common coat pattern in Pomeranians is typically described as black & tan, in which eumelanin is the sole pigment of the dorsal regions, including the trunk and top of the head, and ventral portions, such as the belly and legs, as well as under the tail, the eyebrows and cheeks are pigmented with pheomelanin (Figure 4A). This pattern is prominent in many other breeds, including the Doberman Pinscher and Rottweiler. While the most common colours of eumelanin and pheomelanin in this pattern are indeed black and tan, as we will see in the exotics section below and in Figure 4, this is but one of many possibilities.

In stark contrast to the banding or tipping patterns we see with the ay and aw agouti alleles, the at allele pattern is characterized solely by location-dependent switching of eumelanin and pheomelanin pigmentation rather than temporal switching in individual hairs. Eumelanin & pheomelanin patterned at dogs do not possess any individual hairs with both types of pigment. It should be noted, however, that an ay sable or aw wolf in fact does not have banded or tipped pattern hair in the ventral regions of the body— the legs and belly, just as in the at-patterned dogs. The major difference is the dorsal surface which is either solid eumelanin in at-patterned

Figure 3. Sable, wolf, solid and brindled Pomeranian coats. A) CH Showin’s Wolf Thunder of Alexandroff is a Cream sable, with a light cream base coat rather than the standard orange, but with typical strong intensity of black nose and sabling in the coat. y w Thunder tests a /a and can produce the wolf sable pattern, though this is not evident phenotypically (visually). Owned by Alexandra Likhoded, Alexandroff Pomeranians. B) Chars Pollywog Parti is an orange sable parti. Note the pheomelanin and eumelanin pigmentation in the coloured regions. Owned by Darlene Pruden of Prudens Poms. C) Chocolate orange sable puppy (12 weeks), Finchs Chars Tonka Tuff Tonto X Dee Dee's Choc-a-holic. Note the typical orange colouring of the legs and brown nose that indicate this brown-based dog will be an orange, with chocolate sabling through its fur at maturity. Bred and owned

by Darlene Prudens, Prudens Poms. D) Typical silver-grey appearance of a wolf sable Pomeranian, Poccahontas von Camen Iris, owned by Iris Müller-Camenzind. E) CH Damascusroad Walk on the Sea “Walker”, a solid black Pomeranian. Though it can’t be distinguished by his appearance, Walker is a “dominant black” dog rather than a “recessive black” controlled by Agouti. This is evident by pedigree analysis or genetic testing. Owned by Dr. Paul Eckford and Charles Rose, TinyBear Pomeranians. F) The brindle pattern is a series of eumelanin and pheomelanin stripes on a dog that is genotypically sable (or brindled tan regions of a genotypically black & tan). The brindling pattern is more evident on a puppy than an adult with a long coat. Shown are Iddy Bidy's Kick'N Up A Fuss (Sasha), owned and bred by Bridget McDonald, Iddy Biddy Pomeranians, and sired by Beau James Stripe Up The Band (Tigger) shown on the right. Tigger was bred by Cyndi Wallen of Beau James and is owned by Bridget McDonald, Iddy Biddy Pomeranians.

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dogs, or banded or tipped in wolf and sable, respectively. Therefore, the ventral-dorsal (location-based) switching of pigments likely occurs the same way in all 3 genotypes, and only the pigmentation of the dorsal regions differs.

The “saddle tan”, ag agouti allele, as noted above, does not exist. There are many dogs, however, that are described as “saddle tan”. This is a pattern similar to the “black & tan” pattern, but in which the tan regions have spread out and the black of the dorsal surface has shrunk to a smaller saddle shape. Excellent examples of the “saddle tan” phenotype can be seen in the German Shephard dog or the Bassett Hound.

Genetic analysis has shown that “saddle tan” dogs are genetically black & tan, possessing either the at/at or at/a genotypes (8). One or more other genes may control the size of the tan and/or black regions of the coat in examples of the black & tan pattern. Indeed we even see some “black & tan” Pomeranians that have larger or smaller tan regions, though this is more subtle than in other breeds and not to the extent of a saddle tan appearance.

The rare a Recessive Solid Eumelanin Pattern Some Pomeranians possess solid, eumelanin-based coats, including solid black or solid brown. One particular famous solid black Pomeranian was the stunning CH Finchs You're So Special N Blk (Denzel), who sired multiple litters here and produced several solid black dogs, including our solid black male, CH Damascusroad Walk on the Sea (Walker, Figure 3E). There are two major genetic causes of solid eumelanin coats in dogs. By far the most common is a mutation in the -defensin 103 (K) gene (Figure 1C), in which the gene product has a high affinity for the Mc1R receptor, such that it is never released and never allows the agouti signal peptide to bind and switch the cell to pheomelanin production, regardless of the agouti genotype (1). This mutation in the “K” gene is dominant and thus such examples are typically termed Dominant Black, though more correctly they are dominant solid eumelanin. Dominant solid eumelanin dogs can be easily identified in their pedigree, as each such dog will have at least one solid eumelanin parent. A solid eumelanin phenotype will never skip a generation (unless it coincides with the e/e solid pheomelanin genotype which overrides it). However, the solid dogs need not all be the same colour of eumelanin.

A second mode of solid eumelanin coat genetics is the rare “recessive” solid. This is caused by a single mutation in the agouti gene that results in an agouti signal peptide that likely does not interact with Mc1R to induce pheomelanin pigment production, such that the coat becomes solid eumelanin pigmented (4).

Only a dog that carries two copies of the a, recessive solid agouti allele, would be solid. In any case where there was one copy of the a allele and a functional copy of any agouti allele, the functional copy would bind to Mc1R as normal and produce the typical agouti pattern for that allele (black & tan, sable, or wolf).

Few breeds possess all four agouti alleles, but the Eurasier, a Spitz-type dog, can have any of the 4 separate alleles as each have been detected in genetic studies (8). Other Spitz breeds possess some of the four alleles, though to my knowledge there has been no exhaustive study of the existence of all agouti alleles in the Pomeranian. However, given that other Spitz breeds can possess all four, this is a possibility for the Pomeranian. We know that Pomeranians commonly show both the sable and black & tan phenotypes, and these two alleles are common. We have also seen direct evidence that purebred Pomeranians have tested positive for the aw allele. The a allele, conversely, is very rare. Essentially all examples of solid eumelanin coated Pomeranians are of the Dominant solid (K) type. I have heard anecdotal accounts of two sable dogs (presumably both ay/a) producing a solid black pup, suggesting this allele may in fact exist in Pomeranians.

In discussions with some European breeders, it has been stated that there are examples of dogs that have tested positive for “a”, suggesting that this rare and recessive allele does exist in our breed. We would be very interested in seeing any DNA testing results for dogs that do possess the a agouti allele.

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Exotic Colours and Patterns Many genes exist that modify the colour or intensity of eumelanin, and or pheomelanin. As discussed above, some that lighten orange to cream or white have been proposed but not yet identified in dogs. Yet something invariably exists to control the pheomelanin pigment. We know more about differences in the colour of eumelanin pigment, however there may be additional genes that also function in this regard.

Additionally, there are other patterns that can

Figure 4. The Black & Tan pattern and its exotic variants. A) CH ROM Starhaven Ohso Tan N Dark shows the standard Black & Tan pattern, with desired dark tan pigmentation. B) A young CH ROM Starhaven Ohso Tan N Dark X Alexandroff Bulka Black & Tan puppy, showing the pattern with lighter pigment typical of a puppy. This dog is expected to mature with similar tan pigmentation to his Sire. Bred and owned by Alexandra Likhoded, Alexandroff Pomeranians. C) Prudens Poker Face demonstrates a Black & Tan patterned dog with light cream pheomelanin patterning. Compare with A. Prudens Poker Face was bred and is owned by Darlene Pruden of Prudens Poms. D) Exotics Cocoa Pebbles demonstrates light tan pigmentation on a brown-chocolate rather than a black eumelanin-based dog. Note the brown-chocolate nose and coat. Owned by Darlene Pruden of Prudens Poms. E) Two examples of the merle pattern superimposed on a Black & Tan base coat. Both Prudens Stone Cold steele and Pom Addictions Be Dazzeled show heavy merling on the black portions of the coat, with less merling on the tan regions as typical for this phenotype. Both dogs are owned by Darlene Pruden of Prudens Poms. F) Two examples of Black & Tan Parti, also termed Tri-colour Pomeranians. Prudens Rose Blossom Special and Wild West Tri'n To Outlaw demonstrate both the white blaze typical of a parti and white regions of fur superimposed on the Black & Tan base coat. Both dogs are owned by Darlene Pruden of Prudens Poms.

exist in conjunction with the agouti patterns in Pomeranians. Taken together, there are a broad array of possible choices for each type of agouti pattern. Here we examine some of these: The Exotic Sable, ay The orange-based dog with black nose and black tipping is the most common sable Pomeranian. Via unknown genes that control the intensity of the pheomelanin in the coat, the orange can in fact vary from

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deep red to the lightest of cream, yet the dog will possess the same, deep intensity black nose and sabling/tipping to the fur. As discussed above, some dogs are heavily sabled and some are very lightly sabled, and this may related to the at allele, or completely separate genes. See Figure 3A for an example of a light cream dog with black points and sabling.

The eumelanin pigment can vary greatly in Pomeranians. A normal TRYP1 gene, which encodes for the tyrosinase-related protein 1, is involved in the production of black eumelanin pigment from the amino acid tyrosine (13). Three different mutations in this protein have been identified that make it non-functional.

Normally one of the last steps of eumelanin production involves the conversion from a brown to a black pigment, and when the TRYP1 gene is non-functional, this conversion does not take place. Thus all three identified TRYP1 mutations can be described as the recessive “b” allele suggested by Little (6), and the wildtype version of the TRYP1 gene is the dominant “B” black allele of the B gene. Sable dogs can possess mutations in both of their TRYP1 genes and therefore produce brown rather than black eumelanin pigment. These dogs will have brown noses, eye rims and pads on the feet. Additionally, the sable tipping to the fur will be brown, rather than black. There is some controversy in the breed as to the naming of some of the brown-based dogs, but we would describe this type of dog as a chocolate orange sable, or a chocolate pointed orange sable (Figure 3C). Equally possible would be a chocolate cream sable, or chocolate red sable, etc.

The MLPH gene was identified as the “D” dilution gene in Little’s terminology (6), where mutations cause a defective gene that are inherited recessively and use the symbol “d” (14,15). When the MLPH gene is defective, clumps of pigment can be detected in the pigment producing melanocyte cells, and lower amounts reach the hair. In dogs that produce black eumelanin and have the d/d genotype, the coat has a bluish-grey to light black appearance due to the decreased pigment reaching the fur. Likewise, the nose, eye rims and foot pads appear blue-grey in colour. As d/d has perhaps only a small effect on the pheomelanin pigment, sable d/d dogs have apparently normal red/orange/cream colours to the coats.

These dogs do possess blue sabling/tipping to the coat along with the typical blue-grey noses. MLPH (d/d) mutations also affect brown-based dogs (14). In this case, a sable dog would have a very light brown nose and very light brown tipping to the sabled fur, but again normal or near normal intensity of the red/orange/cream coat colour. Such dogs would be termed beaver orange sable, etc. according to most colour descriptions.

Other genes can also influence the appearance of a sable dog, sometimes in drastic ways. The spotting gene is commonly termed “Pibald” and “Parti” in Pomeranians, and produces patches of white on the coat where there is a lack of pigment. Mutations in the MITF gene appear to be at least one cause of white spots or patches in dogs (16). Parti patches can appear on top of most colours and patterns, including sabled dogs (see Figure 3B for an orange sable parti), be they black, brown-chocolate, blue or beaverbased, and whether they are sabled red, orange or cream. A white blaze on the forehead is always preferred.

The grey-white patterning of the merle phenotype can also affect any colour combination of sable dog, but merle is always more visible in the eumelanin-pigmented fur than the pheomelanin.

Finally, a mutation in the k (-defensin 103 gene) produces the kBr allele (17). When a dog has the phenotype kbr/kbr or kbr/k, and they are a sable, the dog will appear “brindled”. Brindling is a series of stripes of eumelanin and pheomelanin, such as is typical of Boxers, Boston Terriers, etc. The eumelanin stripes can be black, brown, or blue, etc., and the pheomelanin stripes can be red, orange, etc. On shorthaired dogs the stripes are easily visible, whereas in Pomeranians the stripes tend to be much less distinct (Figure 3F).

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The Exotic Wolf, aw A “wolf sable” itself is typically classed as an exotic coat colour. Parti and merle patterns can be imposed on the wolf pattern, just as the sable example above. As described above, a wolf, according to the breed standards is very light silver with darker silver. I suspect that we could have other types of “wolf”, including blue or brown-based, though I have seen no evidence for this.

The Exotic Eumelanin & Pheomelanin, at Though the pattern is generally described as Black & Tan, there are a multitude of colour variations for this pattern (Figure 4). The Black (Figure 4A-C) can in fact be substituted for any eumelanin shade described above, including blue, chocolate/brown (Figure 4D), and dilute chocolate (typically termed Beaver). The tan pheomelanin is typically described “rust” or “tan”, but in fact it can also vary from a deep and rich red colour, to orange (Figure 4A), to cream (Figure 4C-D) and even a light, silvery colour in the so-called Black & Silver. It appears that any possible shade of pheomelanin can be paired with any eumelanin shade.

As with sable and wolf, the Parti and Merle patterns can be superimposed on the eumelanin & pheomelanin base pattern (Figure 4E-F). Black & Tan Parti Pomeranians are also often termed “tri-colour” (Figure 4F).

Finally, the brindle pattern described above can also be seen in dogs with the eumelanin & pheomelanin.

Interestingly, the brindling stripes of eumelanin and pheomelanin appear only in the ventral regions of pheomelanin colouring, i.e. the stripes are only on the tan portions of a Black & Tan.

Exotic Recessive Solid Eumelanin, a As described earlier, most solid eumelanin dogs are K dominant eumelanin, though it is anticipated that a small proportion may in fact be the recessive a type. Sometimes a is referred to as recessive black, but in fact, like other agouti alleles, a itself has nothing to do with the colour of eumelanin, rather it simply specifies the pattern, which is solid. So presumably like the dominant eumelanin phenotype, possibilities would include black, blue, chocolate (brown) or beaver (sometimes called lilac or lavender). White is a complete lack of pigment and is generally thought to be caused by a gene that dilutes down the pheomelanin pigment in e/e solid pheomelanin dogs. However, some dogs appear to be white but are not e/e. Rather they appear to be solid eumelanin-based dogs. It is not clear at this time what causes either type of white dog to have a complete lack of fur pigment, but retain nose colour such as black. Recessive solid eumelanin-based dogs would be affected by both Parti and Merle patterns.

Conclusion The Agouti locus is one of the most important pattern-defining genes of the canine genome, and is responsible for many of the major patterns in Pomeranians. Agouti controls the distribution of the two major types of pigment, pheomelanin and eumelanin in the coat. Multiple genes control the colour and intensity of the pigment in the coat in conjunction with the agouti patterns, and with other genes, such as Parti and Merle to produce a broad array of possible exotic coat colours and patterns in the Pomeranian.

Proposed changes to the breed standard in Canada would not only allow every colour and pattern combination (except for Merle, which would be expressly disqualified), dogs of non-standard colour and pattern are anticipated to be permitted to compete on an equal basis with 24 PomWorld.Com. April, 2013

standard colours and patterns. This may encourage more examples of exotic colours and patterns in the show ring. © 2012 Dr. Paul Eckford, TinyBear Pomeranians.

References 1.

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Candille, S. I., Kaelin, C. B., Cattanach, B. M., Yu, B., Thompson, D. A., Nix, M. A., Kerns, J. A., Schmutz, S. M., Millhauser, G. L., and Barsh, G. S. (2007) A -defensin mutation causes black coat color in domestic dogs. Science 318, 1418-1423 Cieslak, M., Reissmann, M., Hofreiter, M., and Ludwig, A. (2011) Colours of domestication. Biol Rev Camb Philos Soc 86, 885-899 Schmutz, S. M., and Berryere, T. G. (2007) Genes affecting coat colour and pattern in domestic dogs: a review. Anim Genet 38, 539-549 Kerns, J. A., Newton, J., Berryere, T. G., Rubin, E. M., Cheng, J. F., Schmutz, S. M., and Barsh, G. S. (2004) Characterization of the dog Agouti gene and a nonagoutimutation in German Shepherd Dogs. Mamm Genome 15, 798808 Swope, V. B., Jameson, J. A., McFarland, K. L., Supp, D. M., Miller, W. E., McGraw, D. W., Patel, M. A., Nix, M. A., Millhauser, G. L., Babcock, G. F., and Abdel-Malek, Z. A. (2012) Defining MC1R regulation in human melanocytes by its agonist alpha-melanocortin and antagonists agouti signaling protein and beta-defensin 3. J Invest Dermatol 132, 22552262 Little, C. C. (1957) The Inheritance of Coat Color in Dogs, Howell Book House Willis, M. B. (1989) Genetics of the Dog, Howell Book House, New York Dreger, D. L., and Schmutz, S. M. (2011) A SINE insertion causes the black-and-tan and saddle tan phenotypes in domestic dogs. J Hered 102 Suppl 1, S11-18 Schmutz, S. M., Berryere, T. G., Barta, J. L., Reddick, K. D., and Schmutz, J. K. (2007) Agouti sequence polymorphisms in coyotes, wolves and dogs suggest hybridization. J Hered 98, 351-355 Yokoyama, T., Silversides, D. W., Waymire, K. G., Kwon, B. S., Takeuchi, T., and Overbeek, P. A. (1990) Conserved cysteine to serine mutation in tyrosinase is responsible for the classical albino mutation in laboratory mice. Nucleic Acids Res 18, 7293-7298 Schmutz, S. M., and Berryere, T. G. (2007) The genetics of cream coat color in dogs. J Hered 98, 544-548 Mariat, D., Taourit, S., and Guerin, G. (2003) A mutation in the MATP gene causes the cream coat colour in the horse.

Genet Sel Evol 35, 119-133 Schmutz, S. M., Berryere, T. G., and Goldfinch, A. D. (2002) TYRP1 and MC1R genotypes and their effects on coat color in dogs. Mamm Genome 13, 380-387 Philipp, U., Hamann, H., Mecklenburg, L., Nishino, S., Mignot, E., Gunzel-Apel, A. R., Schmutz, S. M., and Leeb, T. (2005) Polymorphisms within the canine MLPH gene are associated with dilute coat color in dogs. BMC Genet 6, 34-48 Philipp, U., Quignon, P., Scott, A., Andre, C., Breen, M., and Leeb, T. (2005) Chromosomal assignment of the canine melanophilin gene (MLPH): a candidate gene for coat color dilution in Pinschers. J Hered 96, 774-776 Rothschild, M. F., Van Cleave, P. S., Glenn, K. L., Carlstrom, L. P., and Ellinwood, N. M. (2006) Association of MITF with white spotting in Beagle crosses and Newfoundland dogs. Anim Genet 37, 606-607 Kerns, J. A., Cargill, E. J., Clark, L. A., Candille, S. I., Berryere, T. G., Olivier, M., Lust, G., Todhunter, R. J., Schmutz, S. M., Murphy, K. E., and Barsh, G. S. (2007) Linkage and segregation analysis of black and brindle coat color in domestic dogs.

Genetics 176, 1679-1689

Originally published in the December, 2012 Edition of Poms in Canada, the official magazine of the

Pomeranian Club of Canada. © 2012 Dr. Paul Eckford, TinyBear Pomeranians.

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By Louise Guyton The photographs posted here are probably the best photos of a classic case of Canine Color Dilution Alopecia aka Color Mutant Alopecia and Alopecia Blue. It is rare to see the entire classic “tell-tale symptoms� so clearly on one dog.

They are: 1. Hair loss on top of head.

These photographs show a perfectly bald dog.

(Pictured left)

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2. Hair loss down the back. This dog has a perfect stripe down the back. (Pictured right)

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3. Long overgrown nails and digits on the paws.

Clearly defined on this dog.

(Pictured left)

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(Pictured left) 4. Hair follicles filled with melanin cause breakage of the hair shaft and stunted growth.

Very Apparent on this dog. Notice the ears and back of head. If blue alopecia is to be apparent, the first place to show hair loss on a puppy will be the tips of the ears.

The cause is defined by a genetic defect that makes the color pigment in the hair shaft be distributed incorrectly. Excessive pigment in the hair shaft causes breakage and/or stunted or non-existent hair growth.

This color dilution recessive gene can be passed down through may generations. Dogs that have blue or fawn (lavender) hair coloration which is created from diluted black and chocolate genes are the most severely affected. The breed does not matter, however, the Doberman pinschers are more affected than any other breed. Strangely not all dogs with blue or fawn color coats are affected.

4

For those of you who understand how color distribution occurs, you will have no problem understanding the following discussion. For those of us who cannot seem to grasp genetics and how they occur and affect coat colorations, this may appear to be an unsolved algebra quiz. The (B) gene for Black can carry two recessive genes, a (d) gene for blue (recessive to black and a (b) gene for chocolate (also recessive to black. When capital letters are used – those are considered to be a dominant gene. The lower-case letters are recessive genes. A dog with (BB) two dominant black genes will be Black. A dog with (bb) will be chocolate.

However each of these dogs will carry an unknown number of color genes that interact with each other.

Chocolate dogs are not affected by Blue Alopecia but are affected by the blue gene. No other colored Pomeranian is affected by Blue Alopecia at all. So if you have a dog that is blue (d) and white or parti colored, the blue parts (d) could be affected but not the white part. Color dilution alopecia is not common in Pomeranians and we are very happy it is not. Any dog that shows the mutant recessive gene should not be bred again under any circumstances and neither should any of its offspring. It might be noted that Blue Alopecia is more common on the male dogs which could indicate that the X chromosome could be the one that carries the gene on.

Another noticeable thing about blue alopecia in Pomeranians is the lack of skin infections which appear in other breeds.

Diagnosis of blue alopecia is done by ruling out other causes of hairloss and taking into consideration the location of hair loss ie: in color dilute blue areas, and by viewing the pigment clumping and hair shaft abnormalities under a microscope. A skin biopsy will also show abnormal hair shaft follicles and follicles filled with keratin and melanin.

As with Black Skin Disease, the hair loss of blue alopecia may be unsightly but the dog is not suffering and his disposition has not changed. He is still a very personable dog and as long as you don’t let him know that he is not as beautiful as his brother or sister, he will think he is just as good as any other dog. There is no known cure for blue Alopecia at this time.

I would like to thank Mary Stickney of Toy Breed Sanctuary and Rescue for the usage of her marvelous photographs that demonstrate so clearly blue alopecia. And I would like to thank Robin Clemans who has explained, re-explained, drawn pictures and virtually crammed down Genetics down my throat to no avail.

One day I will yell “Eureka, I understand!” until then I hope Robin and others do not lose patience with me.

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Hello, I hope everyone had a peaceful and enjoyable Easter break.

During the Easter holidays, I was fortunate to go on a road trip of approximately 1,500 kilometers, round trip, to tropical Townsville in Far North Queensland.

We christened our newly acquired Toyota Coaster Camper Bus “The Tardis” and set out on this journey with three of our Pomeranians in tow.

The Poms were safely crated inside the bus and we all enjoyed our comfortable accommodation immensely.

Our first night we camped out under the stars next to a creek with crystal clear running water and a sandy bottom.

You could see many different species of native fish in the shallows and the tropical rainforest was amazing, with many palm trees just growing wild amongst the bush.

That night, we listened to the sounds of the stream water, rippling over the rocks as we drifted off to sleep.

Of course, the next day I took a swim and my beloved Pip, not to left out of things, came in with me. Pip happily sat upon my shoulder and had the odd paddle about as I swam.

The other two dogs would have no part of swimming, but were happy to watch the goings on from the safety of the creek bank. This is Samson after having a fine time, digging holes in the sandy creek bank. I’m sure he was exhausted after his big workout but he looked so contented with himself!

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Our goal was to attend shows in Proserpine and Townsville with the four championship shows being held over the Easter long-weekend in Townsville.

As we journeyed further north, the humidity set in. Suddenly, all you can see for kilometers is sugar cane paddocks full of tall, rich green cane. I remember getting up early the next morning, in the cool, thinking this was good, but then it warmed up at 9 a.m. and you could feel a few trickles of sweat running down your back and off your forehead, into your eyebrows and stinging your eyes. Wow, it was hot! We had packed large, commercial fans and promptly proceeded to set them up for us all to enjoy a cool breeze. I had to wonder just how the locals could put up with this high humidity and heat.

We reached Proserpine and “the Tardis had purred along the highway without a hitch”. We set up camp at the Proserpine show grounds where we put up a lightweight, portable fence outside the bus, under its awning, so the dogs could roam free and run and play outside. Surprisingly it didn’t take long to set up the roll out awning; the Poms show trolley and our chairs. It was so peaceful and nice to listen to the crickets and other nigh sounds while sipping on a glass of wine. The sky’s then open up and rain pelted down for most of the night.

It was a tropical storm with a bit of wind and heavy, pelting rain. The Poms all slept in the bus, with us that night, scared of the odd thunder clap here and there. Another milestone passed, for The Tardis as it didn’t leak, thank goodness.

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Our first weekend of showing was in Proserpine, at the Bowen Kennel Club. It was very pleasant affair with very friendly exhibitors and a country atmosphere. The dog show rings were just fantastic!

A beautiful old Fig Tree provided shade ring-side; with short mown, thick, lush green Paspalum grass dog rings, surrounded by neatly trimmed hedging, set the scene. It was a very pleasant revelation to find this absolute pearl of a dog grounds in a regional town.

The shows had a total of 175 entries, which I was informed was about average for that area. Group 1 had 30 entries.

We were very amused by one of their ring stewards, a well know local, who has a loud, clear voice and uses her own ‘banter” when stewarding. A few of her “exclusive” muster calls are: - “You know that I know, that you know, you are here!”, “Please show your appreciation for your Best In Group, OH and the dogs to!” and when calling up the Poms “Can we have those tumbleweeds to the gate please” then referring to them as Pomeranians.

We gladly supported the local Club by buying tickets in their multi-prize raffle but didn’t win anything.

The locals told me of a serial pest….a prankster, who keeps popping up, unexpectedly, in their Best in Show and other photos…I think she goes by the name of Helen? She has been known to crash the odd photographer’s session, like these!

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However, fate caught up with Helen recently when Helen was posing for photos with the judge‌.and ta dar! Someone pranked the prankster!

*Photos kindly provided by Mychaka Hounds, thank you Crissy Fornasier, Townsville, Qld.

Continuing on the journey north, driving from Home Hill to Ayr, we drove over an unusual bridge at the Burdekin River. This huge steel structure also has a railway line, which you can see on the left hand side of this photo.

While browsing through the local Op shops, I was lucky to find this wonderful Pomeranian soft toy complete with a FM/AM radio in it.

The radio works! I’ve added it to my Pomeranian memorabilia collection.

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We reached Townsville safely and refueled the bus to travel on to Woodstock, where the dog show was being held. Woodstock is about half an hour drive west of Townsville. We also stocked up on essentials and bought extra fuel for our generator as there is no power available to campers on the grounds. Townsville had received a good wet season and the cattle were well fed, fat and roaming in shoulder high, green grasses in their paddocks. There were many roadside billabongs along the trip and we spotted three brolgas in one billabong, right along-side the highway, a lucky sighting for us.

The Woodstock grounds had started to fill up when we arrived mid-afternoon. We set up our camp besides a shady tree, close to the facilities. We all had generators to run for our own power supplies and were in the process of starting ours up when mayhem broke! A brown snake was spotted heading into an adjoining campsite where their dogs were penned directly in its path! The ladies quickly gathered any useful snake deterrent available (a car jack) and promptly chased this snake into it! Silly snake killed itself! (Native fauna are protected).

We had a good time showing and meeting up with locals, who again were very friendly and helpful. Entries for the weekend shows ranged from 290 to 315, with Group 1 being the largest group. The show had commenced at 3 p.m. when the humidity and heat was full-on and you guessed it…Group 1 was on first!

We enjoyed the evening show, under lights, in the cool of the night with company and a small assortment of wine and cheese.

The Easter bunny made its presence known on Easter Day by loudly calling out, “Happy Easter Everyone” then rapping on the bus door to wake us up. This Easter Bunny left us two milk chocolate bunnies and four chocolate eggs! Such a lovely surprise! We made sure that we caught up this “ bunny” later on in the day and thanked her for her generosity.

The Tardis didn’t let us down and motored on without any hassle for the entire trip. All in all, we had a wonderful trip, enjoyed showing our Poms and had a safe journey back home.

By Taryn Jones, Tooshay Pomeranians, Australia.

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This comprehensive guide will show how you can achieve that immaculate ‘Best in Show’ look on your own Pomeranian. Give you and your Pomeranian the winning edge at Dog Shows, or simply to show off your beautiful Pomeranian to your friends and family.

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Before I proceed I would like to explain that this article is purely from a personal perspective.

(I have been involved in Poms for many years now. I purchased my first Pom in 1974 but have been actively involved with breeding and showing since 1986 and have formed my own opinion about the type of Pom I would like to be involved with and own. )

It is widely regarded that Crufts is to dog enthusiasts what Mecca is to Muslims - you have to go at least once in your lifetime. 2013 proved to be my "Mecca" year. I had sold my house in South Africa and this was my reward!

Edwina and I left very excited on 4 March and were returning via Bangkok so this was to be a very special trip. As Edwina's birthday falls on 1 April it was a birthday present as well!

We arrived at the NEC centre station and checked into the Hilton Metropole close by and then went straight back to the NEC to checknout the venue. We snuck in unnoticed and trawled round the 5 huge halls and managed to get in a bit of shopping of course.

The next day was Terrier day and I spent most of the day with my good friend from South Africa Michael Hughes Hall who now lives in the UK and has been closely involved with Best of Breed & Best Opposite Sex Poms and beautiful Pekes which he showed with great success, as well as of course his beloved Smooth Fox Terriers. Michael is a few years older than me (lol) and a great dog person with many very well-known Pom breeders as long-time friends including the very famous Derek Hill of Derronhill Poms, Basilio Yap from Canton Poms and of course Sean Carroll of Belliver Poms to mention a few. This proved to be a most interesting day and I soaked up his knowledge like a sponge as well as having some great discussion about various smooths. We agreed on many which was a great compliment to me.

Day two was Pom day and Michael called to say he was feeling crook and it was "too bloody cold" for an old man to come out! "Please give my apologies to Sean but do go and have a glass of wine with him". Unfortunately Eve Smail was also not there due to ill health so I was disappointed not to finally meet her. Oh well I am sure there will be another time.

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There were nearly 200 Pom entries so we took our seats ringside and waited for the feast! The judge was Ms Hourihan who has Tibetan Spaniels and her parents were heavily involved in Poms so she brought a wealth of experience to the judging ring.

The entries were quite difficult to follow as no one came in their number order. It seemed that first in best dressed!

So we craned out necks a few times to get numbers and results but first in were the puppies. Of course when you have those kind of numbers you are going to have twenty different types however having been told I would not like the UK Poms, I was very pleasantly surprised!

For the most part I was really impressed and throughout the judging I was pleased to see that the judge retained the true Pom type throughout her judging. Of course there are things I may have done differently, for the most part I could follow exactly what the judge was trying to achieve. I had a talk with Ms Hourihan afterwards and what a delightful person.

Perhaps one of the clubs could invite her to Australia! She could certainly add a fresh approach!

Yvonne & Edwina with Dag Loken "Tiny Jewels " Pomeranians

We had the chance to catch up with Abel Choi of AC Dynasty who was showing his young dog Nate who was placed third in a huge class. (Abel sent Tyler to Australia and is delighted with what he has achieved). We also met up with Julie Sparrow who we invited to judge in South Africa a few years ago. Julie and Karl brought their two gorgeous young boys along whom we had not met yet.

Of course man of the moment was Sean Carroll of Belliver Poms with his dog very skillfully handled by his nephew who is so like his uncle. He was showing a half brother to the Pom which won BOB and the group last year so we were of course rooting for him again and once he won it was wine and cake all round. Very festive and jolly atmosphere at camp Belliver that day!

After watching several classes there were a few UK kennels that continued to bring in one after another gorgeous and typey Poms. They were Billijees, Lirevas, Casarow and of course Belliver. This merely cemented in my mind the kind of Poms I wish to continue with. Beautiful heads and expressions - not down faced which is something creeping into our breed. Small ears - many Poms these days have ears to fly with - something once you have is extremely difficult to breed out, if ever. Compact without being exaggerated and excellent coat type and texture with profuse tails high set and over the backs. Some of the Poms could have been sounder but still remained buoyant in action. Most of the winners displayed that wonderful extrovert temperament and this was obvious in their ring presence.

Abel and Pomeranian "Nate"

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There were representatives from many other countries including Dag Loken of Tiny Jewels in Norway, Frederik Nilsson of Callevys in Sweden, Soffies from Denmark, Dan Star Kom from Russia, Abel Choi of AC Dynasty from Hong Kong and Tair and Mo of Moxie Poms from Thailand to mention a few "foreigners" - lol! We visited Moxie Poms when we went to Thailand and I was very impressed with the tenacity of Tair and how far she has come in just a few short years of breed involvement. She has the potential to become a great ambassador for the breed.

It was great to see all of these Pom people particularly Dag Loken whose dogs I judged at the Swedish Specialty in 2005 and put up the then very young nine month old, now famous, Int Ch Tiny Jewels Mad About The Boy. At the time I would have have liked to have bought him and I had to be content to follow his career from afar but I am thrilled to see how well he has bred on with his progeny.

Frederik Nilsson of Callevys is no stranger to the Pom world. Frederik's mother has been breeding since, I believe it could be the 1950 's, and specialised in blacks. I awarded one of his dogs BIS at the 2005 Swedish specialty It goes without saying that the results of BOB awarded to the young Yearling Ir Ch Belliver Unexpected Target and BOS Nor Ch Tiny Jewels Queen of Gold seemed to be a very popular decision judging by the huge amount of cheering which followed. All in all a fabulous mood around the ring and we had the pleasure of enjoying the day with new friends from Ukraine whom we are keeping in touch with.

After speaking to few "old Pom hands" most of whom don't even have websites, I look forward to keeping in touch with those who are preserving the true Pomeranian type in my own humble opinion.

I look forward to returning to another Crufts in the near future but if it is anything to go by, will learn from Abel Choi's experience. His dog had papers incorrectly filled out by the Crufts vet so when he arrived at Heathrow the dog was seized into quarantine for a week!!!!! Can you imagine the panic not to mention the $$$$ ! Alls well that ends well and Nate and Abel were reunited a week later. Dog was fine but Abel was really shaken! Apparently taking a dog via Heathrow costs about ÂŁ3000 whereas if you drive through France as did Toshi of Smash poodles and Moxiepom it only costs $3000 for a taxi shared from Paris. Whichever way you slice it, Crufts is a very costly exercise and you only win ÂŁ100 for BIS........lol......but oh the prestige of winning surely the greatest show on earth!

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Local trials, about fifteen minutes from my home, one of our girls had been working on novice obedience over the winter and I felt confident and entered her all three days. Gator is a half-sister to Annie. She already has her Rally Novice, her Canine Good Neighbour, and her Pre-Novice and I felt with her progress over the winter, that she was ready. Friday, on lead not too bad – off leash totally different. She parked herself in the middle of the ring and waited while I finished the heeling pattern. Recall not too bad but she didn’t come in close enough. Stand for examination super. She aced the sits and downs. It seemed to be the moving exercises that she took offence to.

Figuring Saturday would be better, she would have the idea by then, that she should proceed as she did in practice and classes. Well, again on lead not bad. But, starting out on the off leash she got as far as the judge – parked her little backside in front of the judge and watched the judge until I finished. Again she aced the sits and downs which I thought she would have a problem with. So, I had to decide – do I continue – or do I throw in the towel – and leave her to be the pet visitation dog. She loves that, barges right in through the big dogs (Belgian Shepherds) so she can get to the resident first. Loves to be held by the people, will lay on their bed so they can touch her. Is the CD after her name all that important? No – I think not! She doesn’t care what her name is – as long as she can go visit “her people”. She taught me a huge lesson over those two days – that not all dogs are created equal, and one should not expect them to like the same things, and perform the same.

We will leave her name as it is “Coronation Pondside Alligator CGN RN PCD”.

It was quite the learning weekend! Article by Roberta Malott of Pondside Pomeranians.

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A friend of mine, and I purchased a puppy over 4 years ago to be used in our breeding programs. He was gorgous, and had a fabulous pedigree. He was 5 months when he came to live with us. My friend came to see him a couple of months later, and he wanted nothing to do with her. So, it was decided he would live with me. We noticed he was a bit shy, but nothing terrible at that time. I bred him when he was about 8 months old and the result was 2 little females. His temperament worsened, shy, fearful. And he had not stopped growing. It was decided to neuter him – we would have worked with his size, but not the temperament.

When I asked his co-owner if she would like one of the puppies out of him, she said she couldn’t afford it at the time but I said “I didn’t ask if you wanted to buy one, I asked if you wanted one” – I gave her the pick of the two puppies.

I felt as his co-owner, she certainly deserved a puppy.

Well, at my house, most of my dogs have jobs. Be it conformation, obedience, freestyle, carting – most of them have been busy doing something. So, I got busy working with “Shadow”. Found that he loved “working”, he became a proficient heeler, so I started on some of the Rally Obedience exercises and found he learned them very 52 PomWorld.Com. April, 2013

quickly. Because of his temperament, I didn’t take him anywhere. But, a local club has annual shows about 15 minutes from my home, and I took a chance and entered him two days in Rally Novice. Saturday when I took him out of his crate he was so very anxious and I wondered if I had done the right thing. The last thing I wanted to do was make him worse. I have to add here I just bought him a “Calming Collar” (google calming collar) and it has worked to take the edge off. So, Saturday April 13th we walked around, and around through the crowds, in and out of the building, I never picked him up (he is now 10 lbs). Saturday I could not get him to pee – I took him out 6-7 times, but

he just wouldn’ t pee. We got in the ring and he started to relax, did the first 8 exercises very well – but then peed.

Big plus here – he was relaxed enough to go and the judge had us complete the course. But an automatic nonqualifier – oh well. Sunday was another day, and I had debated on whether to take him back. But we were entered

so off we went. We didn’t have such a long wait, and in the ring we went. Again, once in there he waggled his tail, and completed the entire course. The judge, on my way out, said “you forgot to walk around your dog” – the first exercise was “down the dog, and walk around the dog” – but she said “you still passed”! I explained the situation to her, about his fearfulness, and anxiety and she said there was no notice of it while he was in the ring. Big wooohooo!!! He ended up with an 89 out of 100 – my little error cost him 10 points. He would have had 99! But I’ll take the 89 – I would have taken a non-qualifier just to see him happy in that ring.

Never once in the two days did he make even a slight move toward a person, or another dog. No noise, no barking, no growling. I don’t normally get pictures taken unless it is for a title, but because it was Shadow, and he got a Fourth in his class with a rosette I had one done. I am just so very proud of how far this boy has come.

I have had people say we should put him down, several people suggested we re-home him. I could never in good conscience re-home him knowing his temperament – I would be afraid someone would hurt him or not understand him and I would never want that to happen to him. He has a home here for life. And returning him to the breeder never once crossed my mind. No he didn’t work out for breeding, but he is such a happy little guy and will try to do anything I ask of him.

What more could anyone ask for!

Article by Roberta Malott of Pondside Pomeranians

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American Pomeranian Club 94th National Specialty Best of Breed Canton Jet Li Best Opposite Sex Ch. Horizon Carleez Raise The Bar Winners Dog Canton Jet Li Reserve Winners Dog Sunterra Sugar Sweet Winners Bitch Mountain Crest Mango Punch Reserve Winners Bitch Foxworth Fine Tuned Instrument

Award of Merit : Cr Chase What Matters Silhouette's Shadowboxer Dee Little Who's The Boss Classic's Coco Chanel Mountain Crest Mango Punch DOGS Dogs, Puppy class 6 to 9 months 1 CR Take A Ride Onda Wild Side 2 Robcarys Silver Starlight 3 Nowlands Orange Crush 4 Lakeways A Toast To Malachy Dogs, Puppy class 9 to 12 months 1 Northmoor Victorian Tycoon 2 Prestigious High and Shy 3 Animations Stinkbert 4 BCPoms Kickin Up the Place Dogs, 12 to 18 months 1 Springwoods Tribute to Gatewood 2 Char's Hotter Than Hot 3 Horizon's Rumor Has It 4 Ragdoll's That's How I Roll

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Dogs, Open Black, Brown & Blue

American Club 94th National 1 Chars ExtraPomeranian Dark Espresso Parti 2 Chelanes Witch King of Nine at Lavie Boheme Specialty Open dogs Red, Orange, Cream & Sable 1 Canton JetExhibitor, Li Pomeranians Bred by Dogs 2 Sunterra Sweet 1 Pomhavens Mission Sugar Impossible 3 Gar V Mile A Minute Murphy 2 JanLes Suitable For Framing 4 Master Poms ofMtn the Sun 3 springwoods Owning the Eclipse Road for Cr 4 Stolannes Midnight in Montgomery Bitches Puppy bitches 6 to 9 months American Bred dogs 1 Foxworth Instrument 1 Mountain Crest ThatzFine WhatTunes Im Talkin About 2 Chars Promise Me the Moon 2 Kstarz Santas Baby 3 Sunny Pom F Russia of Reigningstarz 3 Pixies Memorabilia at Panache 4 Dee Little Miss Can’t Resist Puppy bitches 9 to 12 months Dogs AOAC 1 Aljens HungerParti Games Katniss 1 Chars Mighty Impressive 2 Stolanes 2 Bai Wei He of ChiaoDancing Li Ya Starlet 3 BCPoms A Mothers 3 Sweet Dreams and All That JazzRose 4 Silhouette Spy in the House of Love 4 Firebrooks Gunsmoke Puppy bitches 12 to 18months Mountain Valley Starz All Bubbles Dogs, Open1 Black, Brown & Blue 2 Chelanes Little Miss 1 Chars Extra Dark Espresso Parti Magic Cameo Panache BlossomVon Kachler 2 Chelanes 3Witch KingFatel of Nine at Lavie Boheme 4 Sugarlambs Uptown Girl Open dogs Red, Orange, Cream & Sable Bred by Exhibitor, bitches 1 Canton JetPomeranians Li 1 Pomhavens 2 Sunterra Sugar Sweet Hypnotized 2 Lydon N SoMe Take A Walk on the Wild Side 3 Gar V Mile A Minute Murphy 3 Dreamweaver CR Little Ms Muffet 4 Master Poms Eclipse of the Sun 4 Shyacres Royal Rumball Bitches American Bred bitches Puppy bitches 6 to 9 months 1 Chars Parti Sparkles 1 Foxworth Fine Tunes Instrument 2 Keddys Lady Tristan 2 Chars Promise Me the Moon 3 Sunny Pom F Russia of Reigningstarz bitches 4 Dee LittleOpen Miss ROCS Can’t Resist 1 Mountain Crest Mango Punch 2 Starlights Shining Star For La Grandis 3 Chars Kick Up Your Heels 4 Mimis Lil Ponderosa Just Too Busy Being Fabulous Bitches, Open Black, Brown & Blue 1 Carleez Shes A Brick House 2 Chars Moonstruck Mikayla 3 Dressed By Hersheys 4 Chrisendo Coincidence

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American Pomeranian Club 94th National Specialty Puppy bitches 9 to 12 months 1 Aljens Hunger Games Katniss 2 Stolanes Dancing Starlet 3 BCPoms A Mothers Rose 4 Silhouette Spy in the House of Love Puppy bitches 12 to 18months 1 Mountain Valley Starz All Bubbles 2 Chelanes Little Miss Magic Cameo 3 Panache Fatel BlossomVon Kachler 4 Sugarlambs Uptown Girl Pomeranians Bred by Exhibitor, bitches 1 Pomhavens Hypnotized 2 Lydon N SoMe Take A Walk on the Wild Side 3 Dreamweaver CR Little Ms Muffet 4 Shyacres Royal Rumball American Bred bitches 1 Chars Parti Sparkles 2 Keddys Lady Tristan Open ROCS bitches 1 Mountain Crest Mango Punch 2 Starlights Shining Star For La Grandis 3 Chars Kick Up Your Heels 4 Mimis Lil Ponderosa Just Too Busy Being Fabulous Bitches, Open Black, Brown & Blue 1 Carleez Shes A Brick House 2 Chars Moonstruck Mikayla 3 Dressed By Hersheys 4 Chrisendo Coincidence

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Pomeranian Grooming Video and Pomeranian Grooming Booklet available for instant download

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