I see more brown.
A very deep dark brown, but I think definitely a shade of brown. Almost like a black with a dark brown undertone. To look at them individually you would say they're black dogs but when seen side by side, a couple look... well sort of brownish. More evident on one than on the other. And more evident in bright light than in dim. Hence the title of the post!
Both pups in question are males! Maybe an all new monkey wrench!!! Or not.
I spoke with Lynks owner requesting feedback and will share that which I received. He agrees the pups carry a tinge of brown... but assures me "they are black pups". He himself has seen it in some all black litters and in hindsight, it seems I too have seen it. The previous pups I've sold, without exception have grown to exhibit a sleek and shiny gloss black coat despite having a brown tinge when quite young.
I for one, regardless of color remain extremely anxious to watch this litter grow and develop into some gorgeous specimens of the breed.
The red girls, as expected were not a welcome surprise to those I've spoken with waiting for black pups. That puts all of us, -myself, the people waiting on pups and the pups themselves in a little bit of a bind. One, waiting on a girl isn't totally against red and wants to wait to select from all pups red and black. Some, not surprisingly, want nothing but black and rust. None have come forward to say they'd be more than happy to call a red their own. Originally I thought the red girls appeared to be a pretty dark red... one more dark red than the other but most definitely red. As time progresses they appear to have lightened - becoming more like the reds we consider true reds of the breed. But there are pretty profound variations of the color red within the breed. Some very dark, some lighter. Some look like chocolate and some copper. Having watched these pups over the past 36 hours or so I've got to be honest, I'm having trouble identifying their exact color. Having no experience with reds I'm willing to say maybe it's simply too early to tell but I'm sticking with my original assessment. Nine pups -seven black and two red.
I guess at this point in time, I'm going to leave color alone and get back to simply raising puppies. The rest will fall into place. For now, there are beddings to change, colored collars to assign, weights to obtain, photos to post and the story of their lives to convey. To me, they are Dobermans. And, that for me, is enough.
The photo below, and the one I shared with Lynk's owner, is the best Ive got at this point showing the variation in coat color I previously mentioned. The pup that caught my eye this morning is the one on the far right, taking his turn @ the milk bar. The other is directly to his left.
Stay tuned for updates! I'll get to work on a slide show to share later this evening.