German Wirehaired Pointer Club of America

[Mauser]

I called my breeder today to inquiry about the Decemeber litter which I have reserved 1 male puppy. The puppies are 1 1/2 weeks old, he explained that out of the 6 males, 1 looks like he will be dark and the rest are liver and white. Does that mean that there is no ticking, roan, etc. They are only white with liver spots? Can you tell at 1 1/2 weeks what color markings the dogs will have?
Thanks for your help. It is our first GWP..

[birddog]

All Gwp pups are born white with liver heads and liver spots. If their pads are pink the pup will usually stay white, with of course the liver head and spots they had at birth. The ticking on all others including the ones with the pink pads will start to show around 3-4 weeks of age. As the pups get to be about 7 weeks old you have a pretty good idea of the ones that will remain white and the ones that will turn roan. An experienced breeder usually knows from the get go.. Janet
_________________
Hunting, Its what were all about!

[Mauser]

So how are ticking and roan different? Is it common to have so many white and liver puppies in a litter? Out of 8 there are 6 males with 5 liver and white and 1 darker (which I believe means roan),
Can you tell the first 2 weeks if a puppy most likely will be roan?
Thanks for your help.

[birddog]

All pups are born white with liver heads and spots. If the pups are going to remain white with liver spots, ticking will start to appear around 4 or so weeks. Ticking is very small dots or raisin type spots of the liver color. As the pups grow the white on some pups start to darken and change to roan. The best way I can explain roan is a blending of colors. A Roan puppy will not tick out. Within weeks of birth you can get a pretty good idea of what they will be but you must keep in mind, other then the pups that will stay white the remaining puppies born white will darken to roan or roan ticked and will continue to darken as they grow. The 5 puppies you speak of as white may very well turn to roan or roan ticked. If their noses and pads of feet are pink they will stay white. I hope you can understand this. When I reread this I am not to sure if I understand it?
If you would like, give me a call and perhaps I could help you better.
As for the majority of pups in a wirehaired litter staying white, I personnally would have to question that. JMO
Janet
_________________
Hunting, Its what were all about!

[Mauser]

Thanks so much. I think I got it. So when he says that it looks like there will be 1 darker and the rest will be white and liver. The white most likely means ticked or even maybe roan?
The reason I am concerned is I want a puppy that has a darker roan coat and when he told me that there is only 1 that looks like he will be darker- I got worried. He said that puppy (the darker) will go to some other guy who is planning on breeding and will not take any other color. So I am not sure what the other colors were that no one else wants them.......
What week would you recommend going out to see the puppies to determine the coat color? I would like to go see them prior to the 7 weeks.
Thanks for your information!

[dualgwp]

Many pups that are white, even at 8 wks, will continue to gather ticking as they grow and mature. Some however, will stay white white and may have liver patches. Those little tiny liver spots you see on the body and the legs will get bigger and more often than not more develop as time goes on. I've seen some dogs that we thought would stay pretty white develop lots of ticking as the years went by. They were always very bright dogs, but not solid white.

Many people like the more traditional liver roan color, some like a solid liver, some like brightly ticked dogs and believe it or not, many like a whiter dog.

"As for the majority of pups in a wirehaired litter staying white, I personnally would have to question that."
I'm not sure why you would question a majority of the litter staying white? It's genetics... if both parents were white, or if both carry the white gene, it certainly is possible the majority of the litter could be white. Seen it before.

While we all have our preferences for color, I always suggest you purchase the pedigree and the breeder first and formost. If you definitely want a dark dog, you may have to begin looking for another litter. But remember, even when two dark roans are bred, a white puppy can pop up.....it happens. By 7 or 8 wks old, you will have a pretty solid idea of how the coat color will mature..... an idea, not in stone.

[birddog]

I may be wrong, but I am under the impression it is not the role of a moderator to influence a discussion, or to personnaly respond and influence every comment - it is, however and as I understand it, a moderator's role to keep the peace and make certain a discussion is civil. Otherwise, perhaps this should be an "Ask Bernee and Cherrio" column -- and there is nothing wrong with that, just let the rest of us know so we may direct our questions and answers through you.

Mauser, I would take a look at the pups around 5 weeks or so. You should beable to get some idea of what color these pups will turn out to be. Janet
_________________
Hunting, Its what were all about!

[dualgwp]

I may be a moderator, but I still have an opinion and when things are said that just don't make sense, I say something.
If I am not allowed to add to a discussion, then I will stop being a moderator and you can have the job.

[cheerio]

Don't worry birddog, in a couple of 100's posts and a big smile on your face, you may just be the modarator we will be looking for...

[Soni]

Thank goodness our moderators don't just sit on the sidelines and watch us "behave".

I've had a rescued GWP for one year now so I'm relatively new to the breed. This forum has been very helpful. The expertise and opinions from all are appreciated - that includes from the moderators.

[Chinchy]

Mauser
Go to www.fielddog.com and go to their classified add`s and check out the picture of the GWP puppies some one has listed! These pup`s are liver& white ,& they appear to be very white!! Wonder what the parent`s look like?
_________________
Loyd Tollett
Rock Hill Kennel
Proud Owner & Home Of
Black & White German Wirehaired Pointers

[birddog]

I just took a look at the pictures of the pups on the fielddog website. Those are very young pups. I would say about a few days to a week old. As I stated in my early post all pups are born white with liver heads and spots just as in the picture..Those pups will turn the traditional liver/ or liver/roan ticked. At least the ones that can be seen up close. Janet
_________________
Hunting, Its what were all about!

[Chinchy]

Mauser
After my 1st post I went back to site to look at these pup`s again, never noticed before but they do have a link to veiw pictures of the dam!! I was shocked at her VERY dark coat! There are not pictures of sire that I could find,but makes me wonder, if he is not all white, how much these pup`s will darken up?
_________________
Loyd Tollett
Rock Hill Kennel
Proud Owner & Home Of
Black & White German Wirehaired Pointers

[Chinchy]

One last thing about puppies color`s, even when they are as young as the pup`s in the picture. If you rub their hair backwards against the grain you can see down into their coat and see if they have dark underneath!!! I have been owner of only 2 breeds that I know this applies to, Blue heeler stock dog`s & GWP`s, may be others I don`t know about though!!
_________________
Loyd Tollett
Rock Hill Kennel
Proud Owner & Home Of
Black & White German Wirehaired Pointers

[birddog]

That is 100% correct! When doing that, if the skin appears pink, the pup will stay white. Janet
_________________
Hunting, Its what were all about!