# Sable and Saddle



## GSDkid (Apr 19, 2011)

How can you tell?

I'm not talking about the typical All black sable or typical Saddle GSDs. I've been trying to look it up because I really don't know what my GSD is. She doesn't the typical Saddle or an overall dominant black color. Other than looking from their lineage or parents, how do you tell? Here's some recent photos of her at 5 months..


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## GSDBESTK9 (Mar 26, 2002)

She is a Sable.


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## gsdraven (Jul 8, 2009)

She's a sable.

Here's some reading that might help you understand the difference. Especially the colour & pigment page. The Illustrated Standard Of The German Shepherd Dog


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## martemchik (Nov 23, 2010)

If you pull a hair and it has two colors on it, she's a sable, if its only got black or tan she's a saddleback. But she's definately a sable, looks just like mine did at 5 months.


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## gsdraven (Jul 8, 2009)

martemchik said:


> If you pull a hair and it has two colors on it, she's a sable, if its only got black or tan she's a saddleback.


We've had this discussion on a different thread. There's more to it than just two colors on the hair. My female's darkest saddle hair has two colors on it and there is no doubt she's a saddle.


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## Castlemaid (Jun 29, 2006)

You're pup is a typical sable. Normal for some areas around the shoulders to show more of the undercoat, and giving him a bit of a patterned look. Sables can change a lot as they grow, so your pup will probably darken up a bit as she gets older. Or not.


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## Freestep (May 1, 2011)

gsdraven said:


> We've had this discussion on a different thread. There's more to it than just two colors on the hair. My female's darkest saddle hair has two colors on it and there is no doubt she's a saddle.


Also, many saddle dogs (especially females) will have a grizzled stripe of hair from the withers to the tail, where each hair is more than one color.


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## afriel10 (Apr 1, 2011)

martemchik said:


> If you pull a hair and it has two colors on it, she's a sable, if its only got black or tan she's a saddleback.


 is this true because my gsd has black and white on some but is a black and tan


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## gsdraven (Jul 8, 2009)

Freestep said:


> gsdraven said:
> 
> 
> > We've had this discussion on a different thread. There's more to it than just two colors on the hair. My female's darkest saddle hair has two colors on it and there is no doubt she's a saddle.
> ...


Yes the bitch stripe. Here's the thread I mentioned. http://www.germanshepherds.com/forum/breed-standard/153918-name-color.html Though Raven has a bitch stripe, the hair that I took a picture of is from the blackest part of her saddle.



afriel10 said:


> is this true because my gsd has black and white on some but is a black and tan


No, it's not.


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## martemchik (Nov 23, 2010)

Its hard to explain but I'm pretty sure its mostly true. I can see what you're talking about gsdraven about how your dog's hair isn't black all the way to the skin, but a sable has much more tan and a little black tip. My dog's hair will even go black/tan/black on one hair and change shades more than once on a single hair. I don't believe a blanket/saddleback will do that. Yours even looks like its very little tan and then all black.


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## gsdraven (Jul 8, 2009)

martemchik said:


> My dog's hair will even go black/tan/black on one hair and change shades more than once on a single hair. I don't believe a blanket/saddleback will do that.


That's called banding which is more accurate than to say two colors on one strand of hair. Like I pointed out in the other thread.. simply saying two colors gives the wrong impression because saddles can have 2 colors on a single strand but they lack the banding.


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## martemchik (Nov 23, 2010)

Oh, well then we had the same idea just different terminology. Thanks for clearing that up. Learn something new every day...


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## gsdraven (Jul 8, 2009)

martemchik said:


> Oh, well then we had the same idea just different terminology.


Yup.  I'm just a nerd and try to be as accurate as possible since so many people read here and don't post and may think "hey, my GSD has two colors on one strand they must be a sable!" when they really have B&T saddle. I learned the differece here too when I first starting reading.


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## GSDkid (Apr 19, 2011)

Thanks! It helps to know what she is and thanks for the link Raven.


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