Re: [pyrnet] Black Pyrenees, White Newf...

["Chrissy McConnell" <chrissy_mcconnell@hotmail.com>]

We had two rescues last year, sister and brother who had been acquired at a 
stock sale at four weeks of age!  These two had pink/white spotting on the 
skin of their eyelids, etc. and crooked legs amongst other problems from bad 
breeding and possibly the way they were raised.  (Shut in a manure filled 
stall for the first part of their "life", then running wild.)

Neighbors rescued them, kept the girl and had her spayed, etc.....wonderful 
ladies....Kylee lives indoors with a few rescued Cockers, Retrievers, 
Rabbits, etc.....and NCAGPC Rescue took the boy and placed him.  Skye, which 
I called Thunder and who is now called Hagar was neutered, etc. and lives 
with a very nice couple in PA.

Anyway, our attention was recently brought to a Pyr girl about their age who 
is deaf.  From the description her owners give, she is probably a sister to 
Kylee and Hagar.  She is solid white and they say all the dogs in her 
pedigree are all white, although I haven't seen the ped myself.  The 
original "owner" of Kylee and Hagar didn't have their pedigree or 
registration that we know of, he was just going to shoot them.

So, whether they are related or not, it still shows the physical problems 
that come from poor breeding and raising and that deafness can happen.

By the way, this extreme piebald or "colored dog with a BIG white spot" is 
interesting and I seem to remember someone talking about that with cats.  We 
had some cats that seem to fit this.

Now, I know this isn't going to settle well with some people as it involves 
a few litters of just plain Domestic Short Hair and Domestic Long Hair cats 
but they're all spayed/neutered now.

It started with "Snowy", a white, blue eyed, short haired Siamese mix male 
cat my Mom acquired a few years ago.  He bred my Aunt's "Tabitha"....gray 
and white tabby, long haired, green eyed cat.

This gave birth (for a few litters) to usually one white kitten with a gray 
spot or spots on the top of the head, either long or short haired, sometimes 
with blue eyes, sometimes yellow or green.  Never deaf.

Tabitha was spayed, Snowy was neutered, I took a white (with gray spot), 
yellow eyed, short haired kitten...."Mayte".

She had a few litters with the neighbor's short haired, black and white cat 
(never got close enough to see his eye color) which usually had one or two 
of the typical whites.  (I believe the neighbor's cat descends from some of 
her original long haired, black and whites.)

One litter was sired by her yellow/green eyed, long haired, black and white 
tuxedo son "Tails" which resulted with two white, short haired kittens.  The 
male had one yellow/green eye and one blue eye, the female's eyes were both 
yellow/green.

"Kitty" as we call her had one litter by her sire/brother which resulted in 
most of the litter being the typical white with gray spot(s).

They've all been spayed/neutered and none are deaf.

Now, can anyone who has studied color genetics a little more than I, 
especially in cats, explain the seemingly dominate white with the gray spot 
and no deafness as is often the case with white cats and often blue eyes?

Chrissy  :)


>The possibility of being extreme piebald may help to explain why >deafness 
>is so rare in Pyrs but isn't rare in many other white breeds.
>
>Linda

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