Basic Genetics Of The Sable Sheltie Coat Color

In shelties, sable is the dominant coat color gene over tri-color AND black.

There are three basic sheltie colors: sable, tri-color, and bi-black.

• Sable is the dominant color

• Tri-color (black, white & tan) is recessive to sable but dominant to bi-black

• Bi-black (black with white) is recessive to both sable and tri-color

Sable has a wide range of shades from a clear red, to shaded, to mahogany (which has a black overlay).

Many people …