Exploring the Stunning Colors and Unique Patterns of Yorkshire Terriers

KB Chocolate Yorkie (Mischa)

The KB Chocolate Yorkie is a chocolate-colored Yorkshire Terrier that belongs to the "dominant black" gene variation. The KB gene, which stands for dominant black, suppresses other colors, resulting in a solid chocolate coat rather than the typical black and tan pattern. This deep brown color is due to the presence of two copies of the chocolate gene. The KB gene ensures that the Chocolate color appears solid, without the usual black and tan markings seen in other Yorkies.

Chocolate Yorkies are considered a rarer color, making them highly desirable to some owners.

Chocolate (bb)

A Yorkie with two copies of the Chocolate gene will change from traditional or golden to a beautiful brown color. They remain genetically Traditional or Golden, as the Chocolate gene only affects their pigment. The chocolate gene turns the nose brown and may lighten the eye color. Their shades can vary, and it is not uncommon for their coats to lighten as they age. Note that these are all Traditional Yorkies (at/at) with the chocolate gene. Golden chocolates have a slightly different appearance.

Chocolate Parti - (bb plus SS)

Chocolate Parti Yorkies involve two different loci. When bred, a Chocolate Parti will always pass one copy of each gene to its offspring, making each puppy a Carrier of both genes. This means that both parents must either be or carry Chocolate and Parti to produce a Chocolate Parti. This makes them harder to produce, rarer, and typically more expensive than Traditionals, Chocolates, or Partis.

Traditional - Black & Tan (at/at)

Traditional Yorkies are usually described as black and tan. Sometimes the black markings lighten to a much lighter, silver color due to the "greying gene." Also, the tan points seen on a young puppy’s face often mature to a solid gold/tan.

Parti (SS) (Alexandra and Moonshine)

Parti refers to white markings on the Yorkie, which can occur with any color. Some Traditional Yorkies that only carry the parti gene may have significant white areas. It's not uncommon for a Parti carrier to have white toes, chest, and belly, and sometimes a stripe across the back of the neck. The amount of white on a Parti Yorkie can range from very little to mostly all white.

Blonde - (ee)

Blonde, although recessive, is essentially dominant over almost all other loci. A blonde can be genetically traditional, golden, or brindle but will appear all blonde. This makes it impossible to determine visually whether a blonde carries other colors. The only way to know what genes it will pass down to its offspring is through DNA color testing or knowledge of their parents. Blondes can also be parti and chocolate.

Golden - Sable (ay/ay)

Golden, more commonly called sable, can produce a range of colors from light fawn to dark red. They sometimes appear chocolate or nearly black at birth and can lighten to resemble ee blonde. It's a dominant gene, so only one parent needs to be golden to produce golden puppies. Offspring of a golden parent will not automatically be a carrier of the gene unless a parent carries two copies of the gene. This is a common misconception because parti, chocolate, and blonde are all recessive, and if one parent is one of these, all their puppies will carry at least one copy of the gene, making them a carrier. A golden will be golden colored even if they carry only one copy of the gene. There are some exceptions, such as if the dog is blonde or KB black.

Brindle (Kbr) plus (at/at)

A traditional with brindle tan points. Brindle markings will only appear on tan/sable. Thus, these Yorkies may look traditional, but a closer examination will show their tan points have brindle markings. If they were golden instead of black and tan, you'd see the black brindle striping over their entire bodies.

Merle - (Mm)

Merle is a dominant gene that creates mottled patches of color. Merle can affect all coat colors. Golden (Ay) Yorkies can also be affected by merle, but the patches are much harder to see. If the Yorkie is ee Blonde, Merle will not be visible at all. Traditional Merles are often referred to as "Blue Merles."

Merle can also change the eye color and the coloring of the nose and paw pads. The Merle gene modifies the dark pigment in the eyes, occasionally changing dark eyes to blue or only part of the eye blue. Color on paw pads and the nose may also have pink patches.

Two merles should never be bred together, as there is a high chance of the puppies having serious health issues.

Merle Yorkies are considered a rare variation of the breed, and not all Yorkies can be merle.

A “carrier” of any of these different types of genes, colors, and patterns means a Yorkie has inherited a recessive gene and may not display that color but can produce that color when bred with another Yorkie, depending on the mate's genes.