10 merle dog breeds with dappled coats

Like us humans, dogs too have multiple distinguishable features that make them truly unique. Merle dog breeds are canines that predominately show the merle coat pattern, a scattering of mottled patches that appear on their coat, typically in spots of red (liver merle) or black or gray (blue merle) colorings. 

This is caused by genetics: if a dog inherits a dominant and a recessive copy of the same gene from its parents, then it will have a standard merle coat (Mm) but you may have also heard about a double merle coat in a dog (MM). This can happen if a dog inherits two dominant copies resulting in a coat, that despite what its name suggests, actually has less patches of merle but is largely considered irresponsible by breeders who look to breed not just for aesthetic purposes but for betterment of the dog.  

A further defining characteristic of a merle dog is that they may have odd-colored eyes, such as one blue and one brown. A prime example of this would be the loving and loyal Australian Shepherd who not only features the typical merle markings to his coat, but can often be seen with one color eye different than the other.

Merle shouldn't be confused with the markings seen on brindle dog breeds, which are typically tiger-like stripes across the coat but it is a trait that is also inherited by genes from the parents. 

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By Ashleigh Gibbs