Different Colors Of German Shepherds (Guides)

Many dog breeds have different colors that make them unique from the others; in the same way, the German Shepherd also has many breeds. Some of the breeds’ colors are considered the faults among the researchers, but people are highly in love with the different colors of the German Shepherd breed.

German Shepherd breeds are dogs who are considered as a working and family dog. They are very courageous and playful being a working dog; they require immense exercise and food in their day to day life.

The Original German Shepherd Colors

The people who love dogs can greatly prefer a color choice of their pet dog when they are adopting one. Talking about the German Shepherd, all their colors were defined in the 1800s and 1950s. Basic original colors of the breed of a German shepherd breed are:-

  • Black and white
  • Solid Black
  • Solid white

Most of the dogs breed revolve around these colors, so does the breed of German Shepherd is. The original colors of this breed of dog are highly common but not in America. America has a different a little brown color as a common among the German Shepherd breed.

Most Common Colors

German shepherd breed of the dog is famous among most parts of the world. Being a renowned breed, there are some common colors that you will find in the breed of a German Shepherd. Let us go through the common colors of a German shepherd:-

  • White: as mentioned above, white color is among the original colors that a German Shepherd breed has, moreover being original color white color is also a very common color for this breed of dog. These white color German Shepherds are highly seen in obedience competition of the dogs.
  • Black: the Black is also a common and original color of a German shepherd breed; you can easily find a black color German shepherd near your locality.
  •  Black and red: this color variation is similar to the color variation that can be black and tan where the tan portion is turned red. This breed of the German Shepherd is common among the shows.
  • Black and Tan: as mentioned above, the black and tan variety is similar to Black and red. This variety is common in the localities, and these are also considered the working dogs.
  • Bicolor:  bicolor breed of dog is normally seen as a black breed; only this is because the dog’s coat has a touch of silver or gray color on its black coat of hairs.
  • Liver and tan: liver color German Shepherd, are a unique category of this breed typically black in normal German Shepherd; it will be a little brownish in this with a tan touch.
  • Blue: just as the liver-colored German Shepherd, the blue color of this breed will also have a little blue color in place of Black in the normal one.
  • Sable: this variety of German Shepherd is also known as the tricolor German Shepherd, which hints us that there is a hint of three different colors in this breed.

 Are you shocked by the different and unique colors? Science has progressed so much that you can’t even imagine what is coming next in this race.

Rare Colors 

You must be wondering why you cannot see different colors of dogs on the streets; this is because some of the dogs of different colors are rare and expensive. Let us have a look over some rare colors of German Shepherd-

  • Light Blue: yes, the blue and the light blue color German Shepherd are two different breeds. The light blue color of German Shepherd has a hint of Grey color in their coat.
  • Panda: Panda is not initially as a color; it is a pattern more than a color. The dog of this pattern will have a white color coat with some black spots on it.
  • Grey: A grey color German Shepherd can highly relate to a sable colored; however, it can have a range of Gray, Black, Tan, and silver color.
  • Liver: just like an original black color German shepherd, the liver-colored German Shepherd can be entirely liver in color without any tan shades.

It is interesting about how different and rare the color of a breed of dog can be.  

Do German Shepherd Colors Changes by Age?

Does German Shepherd change their color? Well, yes, German Shepherd changes their color as they grow older. However, the change of color of a German Shepherd can deeply depend on the Original color of the dog breed.

Let us have a look over the color change by considering the different colors of the breed.

  • Black and Tan: this is the most common variety of German Shepherd dogs found in your nearby, but do you know that these dogs are not born Black and tan? Yes, this variety of dogs is born Black, and gradually, the tan color stats come out when they grow up to six months. Moreover, they have a limit up to which they can turn tan and stop their color change at two years.
  • Sable: a sable color German Shepherd can be any among the gray, black, or silver; however, they have a tendency to change their color as soon as they grow six months old; they can turn lighter or darker.

Misconceptions about German Shepherd Coat

Let us clear some of the misconceptions that people have in color:

  • Tan and black/red and black: the Tan and red color among the variety is originally the same; just the difference between a little lighter and darker may occur.
  • Solid white: do not confuse yourself by calling a solid white GSD as an albino. It is confirmed that they don’t have the genes of albino in them. Liver and blue: the liver and blue are not a rare color; the flow of pigment is common among the color genes. 
  • Panda breed: panda GSD is not a crossbreed; this is because of a fault in the genetics.

Finally, you are now aware of the color details of a German Shepherd.