Fawn (Izabella) GSD Pups

My Steel Blue Bitch Gypsy and my Powder Blue Male Rebel whelped an unplanned litter on Feb. 10, 2001 This litter consisted of 6 pups. Three Blues and Three Fawns. The Fawn pups are genetically "Diluted Livers". Since they were born from two Blue parents they naturally are Blues, but each parent was also a carrier of the Liver recessive color gene and 3 of the pups received a copy of this from each parent as well resulting in some very unusually colored pups. This series of photos documents the 3 Fawn pups whelped in that litter. Visit the Genetic Information page for a more detailed, yet simplified, explanation of the genetic activity involved in Canine color genetics.

4 of the 6 pup litter shown here only hours after being whelped. The Fawns, shown on the left, had a frosted look to their coat with an oddly metallic looking silvery sheen. Their coat color was quite unlike anything I had ever seen before. A Fawn pups Genotype is dd bb.

Gypsy, being a first time mother, is still curious as to what these mewling bundles of fur actually are . Note the pup on the far right. She was the only female and the only Powder Blue in this litter. Her coat also had a striking silvery sheen to the tips as newborn Powder Blue pups often have. Although Steel Blues have a frosted look to the tips of their fur as well when whelped they lose this effect to some extent much faster than the Powder Blues do.

Two of the Fawn pups. Another name often used to describe this color (Phenotype) is Izabella. In other breeds the name "Lilac" may be used. This particular Genotype is identified as dd bb

The pups are 3 days old in this photo. You can see the Powder Blue Female on the far left. This picture is very accurate in representing their coat color at that time. Blue and Fawn pups change coat color quite rapidly during their early months in life. At this age the changes can and do occur day to day at times.

2 of the Fawn pups. You can clearly see their masks and facial markings emerging. This photo is not the best for accurate color representation. The lighting was very poor.

Another shot under sub-standard lighting conditions. A Fawn pup lies across a Blue littermate. There is a Steel Blue pup on the left of the photo and another Fawn half cut out of the photo on the right. Thankfully the majority of the photos in the next pages were taken under better lighting circumstances!