Double Merle Transport Pup

As promised, here is the information on double merles and photos of a cute puppy.

Firstly what is double merle? Lets start with the basics. Some breeds of dogs, like the Australian Shepherd, can have pattern called merle. The merle pattern can be on any color and produces a pretty spotted/patch pattern. (Again, this is a very basic explanation.) When two merle patterned dogs are bred together there is a 25% chance of getting a double merle pup, that is a puppy who is homozygous for the merle pattern gene. Visually this produces a dog that is mostly or completely white and (most likely) has blue eyes.

Happy to be out for a potty break.

You may be wondering what is so wrong with white puppies. It is not the appearance that is the trouble. Double merle dogs more often then not, have problems that are directly linked to being homozygous for the merle gene. The most common problem is deafness, while not all are deaf or totally deaf the majority of double merles will be deaf. The other big issue linked to double merle has to deal with the dog's eyes. A double merle's eye(s) can be too small "micro eye," born without eye(s) and misshapen pupil(s) all of which either caused impaired vision or blindness.

Finally sleeping.

All of that could be avoided with responsible breeding practices. The puppy I picked up for transport today is a double merle and is completely deaf, his vision is functional but has not been fully tested.

For most of the trip he cried, howled, yapped and barked. Imagine being in his position, eight weeks old and taken away from all you know, unable to find mom or siblings. All the sights and smells are new.

He was scared, confused and I could not do much to help put him at ease. When he finally did relax (about an hour in, 30 mins from our destination) I gave a big sigh of relief. The hand off to his foster family was seamless, I could tell they were already in love. It it wonderful that people like that make a place in this world for puppies deemed "damaged goods" by some. All I can do is my little part to help puppies like the one from earlier today get to the people who love them and try to educate others.