# Why do long coat characterics vanish in puppies?



## talihawk (Aug 3, 2013)

I think I managed to read or skim over all the past posts and threads on long coats but I haven't seen much of this discussed yet. 

It seems most say you can't tell if a puppy will be a long coat until they are 7 to 9 weeks old. (assuming that both parents aren't long coated and are just carriers for the recessive gene.)

Why do some puppies seem to show long coated characteristics early on and have them vanish by age 7 weeks? ex: The fluffy ears or the slight wave of fur along the faces and back diminish, suggesting the dog will have just a plush / stock coat.

Do these characteristics ever come back again? 

Thanks!


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## Cassidy's Mom (Mar 30, 2003)

Many people, including experienced breeders who frequently have coaties show up in their litters can, tell much earlier, usually by 4 or 5 weeks and possibly even sooner. I'm not a breeder and I'm certainly no expert, but I am on coatie #2 and #3, and from my admittedly limited experience it's the fluffy ears that are the dead giveaway. 

Whatever kind of coat the puppy has at 7-9 weeks old it's just a puppy coat, which will be eventually be replaced by the adult coat, so that's not the best indication. But the longer fur in and around the ears is a very good indication that the puppy will be a LC. I've also noticed a difference in the face shape, but since I'm NOT an expert it's easier for me to tell in the context of an entire litter, by comparing how this particular puppy looks in relation to its littermates.


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## middleofnowhere (Dec 20, 2000)

I don't know. I will say that one long coat as a pup had wonky ears and total bedhead body. The other long coat had immaculate straight up ears and a coat not at all like the first dog as a pup but quite neat.


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## talihawk (Aug 3, 2013)

Wow! do you have any pictures you could show? when your dog was a puppy?


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## middleofnowhere (Dec 20, 2000)

sorry but none handy (moved a few months back & not yet really settled enough)


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## njk (Jan 11, 2014)

I had always assumed it was the fluffy coat that was a giveaway, but my pup is now 5 months old and while not short, her coat is a lot shorter than it was as a puppy. Except the ears - the ears are still fluffy. She was so fluffy as a pup (pics below: 6-7 weeks old, then 8 weeks old) and I assumed her fur would just keep getting longer and longer but instead it got shorter lol our breeder has been in business (breeding, showing, and obedience) for 40 years so I trust her, but I did briefly wonder if we would end up with a short coat.


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## talihawk (Aug 3, 2013)

Awesome, thanks so much for sharing the pictures Njk ! She's adorable


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## Cassidy's Mom (Mar 30, 2003)

Here's the first picture I got of Dena, she was about 4 weeks old here:










This is 6 weeks, she's the one with the multicolored rick rack:










And in the back in this shot - the green collar boy in the front was the other coatie in the litter:










The litter at 8 weeks, both coaties are on the left:










And an 8 week solo shot:


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## graciesmom (Jun 10, 2006)

I've been told that at 4 or 5 weeks of age, if you hold (gently) their ears up they look like a hedgehog with the tufts around the ears and face. I don't know if this helps or not, but that's what I heard.


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## talihawk (Aug 3, 2013)

They are very cute! Definitely can tell the differences between the pups.


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## mego (Jan 27, 2013)

My dog was a fuzzball when she was super young. When she lost all her puppy coat there were a few months where she was super naked and looked like a short coat except for ear floofs, then the coat came in and now she's pretty fluffy. It took a long time for her adult coat to come in

Naked phase


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## talihawk (Aug 3, 2013)

Thanks for the info ya'll. I appreciate it.


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## Chip18 (Jan 11, 2014)

OK rookie question, coming up. I want a White Boxer, I can find White Boxers, there uh White! 

So if you want a long hair GSD, you can't look for a longhair GSD?? Are they like OS GSD's it just happens??


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## talihawk (Aug 3, 2013)

Long coat is recessive, so some times you can get long coated puppies from parents who are short or plush. While some folks aren't too picky about their breeders, others are so it can be challenging to find a breeder that meets most of one's desired qualifications. So it's a bit more complicated than just doing a google search for 'long coat gsd puppies'.


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