15 Dog Breeds With Gorgeous Merle Coats

Have you ever wondered what gives certain dogs their stunningly speckled coats? It’s all thanks to the Merle gene, a genetic marvel that creates beautiful patterns of mottled colors, often accompanied by striking blue eyes. Let’s find some of these fascinating Merle-coated breeds in this gallery.
Australian Shepherd

The Australian Shepherd, originating from Spanish herding dogs in the 1500s, is celebrated for its striking coat colors. These colors include blue merle, red merle, solid black, and solid red, all of which can have white markings and tan points. Blue and black merles have black pigmentation on their noses, lips, and eye rims, while red merles feature liver-colored pigmentation. The breed standard emphasizes intense, rich colors, with non-white areas around the ears and eyes.
Catahoula Leopard Dog

The Merle gene in the Catahoula behaves uniquely due to specific modifiers that reduce deafness compared to other breeds. This unique genetic variation makes the Catahoula a distinctive breed in terms of health considerations. Breeding double Merle (dogs that possess two copies of the merle variant of the Silv gene) Catahoulas do not increase deafness rates, unlike in some breeds, providing a reassuring aspect to this breed’s genetic makeup.
Norwegian Hound

This breed uniquely showcases both the saddle pattern and the merle gene. Merling covers the back, tail, neck, and top of the head, while light tan areas, likely lightened by the Intensity gene, fill in between. Additionally, the Norwegian Hound (also called Dunker) features white in the Irish spotting pattern, making for a striking coat.
Border Collie

One of the most intelligent and skilled sheepdogs globally, Border Collies comes in several striking color variations. Their coats primarily feature black and white, brown and white (ranging to reddish), and true red. A mottled pattern can also occur, where grey hairs mix into the white areas, creating a “mottled” effect. This pattern is more pronounced in long-haired coats, appearing as spots on shorter-haired ones.
Mudi

The Mudi has a range of appealing coat colors, available in solid or merle patterns. These colors include black, brown, white, yellow, ash, and ash brown. It’s important to note that breeding merle dogs together is discouraged due to the potential health risks in homozygous (or “double”) Mudi puppies. These risks can affect pigmentation, hearing, or vision, ranging from minor to severe issues.
Cardigan Welsh Corgi

The Cardigan Welsh Corgi isn’t just famous for its adorable looks and trademark “Corgi butt”—it’s also a fiercely loyal and highly trainable companion. Although Corgis typically aren’t associated with merle patterns, the AKC breed standard permits merle-colored Cardigan Welsh Corgis. These often appear as blue merles, presenting a greyish hue, or as blue tri merles, featuring gray with tan points. Merle Corgis commonly exhibit light-grey or blue eyes, adding to their appearance.
Collie

They are famous for their high activity levels and agility, traits that stem from their strong herding instinct. These breeds display various colorations, with base colors ranging from black, black-and-tan, red, and red-and-tan to sable, black and tan, blue merle, and sable merle. Collies often feature white markings on the belly, chest, shoulders, and parts of the face and legs. Interestingly, some Collies may have only their head colored, with minimal or no white markings elsewhere.
Shetland Sheepdog

Also called Sheltie, this breed showcases a range of colors. These include sable in shades from pale gold to deep mahogany, tricolor with intense black and rich tan markings, and blue merle featuring silvery blue with marbled black. Black and white or black and tan variations are also seen, though body patches in these colors are less desired by the breeders.
Dachshund

With a distinguishing appearance and a spectrum of captivating colors, including blue, red, chocolate, and even lilac, the Dachshund stands out among dog breeds. However, the Merle coat pattern, not native to Dachshunds, was introduced through crossbreeding with breeds like the Australian Shepherd or Border Collie. This genetic addition brought about the emergence of Merle Dachshunds, requiring careful breeding practices to ensure their health and well-being.
Beauceron

The Beauceron has a hard outer coat and dense wooly undercoat, which is ideal for colder weather and outdoor sleeping. Standard colors are black and tan, with harlequin (gray, black, and tan) seen less often. Colors like tawny and gray-black, once common, are now banned by breed standards.
Bergamasco Shepherd

Characterized by a long, thick coat covering every part of its body, the Bergamasco Shepherd features matted locks on the hindquarters for weather protection. The forepart displays coarse, wavy ringlets like a goat’s coat, while the head has finer hair. Coat colors range from pale gray to matte black, with hints of isabella or fulvous allowed, adding to its distinctive appearance and suitability for various climates.
Pyrenean Shepherd

This breed is France’s smallest herding breed and exhibits remarkable diversity in coat varieties and colors. It comes in two distinct types: medium and long-haired, which features extended facial hair compared to its smooth-faced counterpart. The most common colors include fawn, gray, blue, brindle, and black, often accented with a black overlay.
Great Dane

Known for its immense size and mastiff-sighthound heritage, the Great Dane is distinguished by six to seven show-acceptable coat colors. These include fawn and brindle, as well as solid colors like black, harlequin, and mantle patterns. Despite their Merle genes, the breed has not been approved in the Merle breed dogs category.
Pomeranian

They sport an extensive range of coat colors, from classic whites and blacks to vibrant oranges, blues, and sables. Among the most common are orange, black, and cream/white. However, merle-colored Pomeranians may be prone to health issues like deafness and vision problems.
Bulldog

This British breed of mastiff type is loved for its short, flat, and sleek coat. This breed comes in various colors, including red, fawn, white, brindle, and piebald. However, breeding merle-colored Bulldogs has sparked an ongoing and passionate debate due to the increasing number of diseases in the breed.