Haynes Pit Bulls- Black and Tan Pit Bulls (Tan Pointed Markings)

Black & Tan Pit Bulls

An explanation of the Black & Tan and other Tan pointed markings in an
American Pit Bull Terrier

We have been approached many times regarding our Black & Tan Pit Bulls. We thought we would
take the time to write a little something about it and explain it more. I have researched it a lot
online and have seen a few other Black & Tans or Tan-Pointed Pit Bulls. Many seem to think that
this is due to crossbreeding or a sign that it is not purebred. That is not the case what so ever.
We are very proud to have the Black & Tan trait in the Haynes bloodline. This is not, however,
available through all Pit Bulls.

If you know that your dog is a carrier of the Black & Tan trait, mating him/her to just any Pit Bull
will not guarantee that a Black & Tan Puppy will be produced. More information on that below.

From my various sources from online and in books I have read, I will be quoting and stating
important facts or opinions on this page. I am in no way trying to take credit of the information or
photos. I am simply collecting what I think is relevant and valuable information. References are
below.

Here is an excerpt from the Encyclopædia Britannica explaining Pit Bull Terrier:

Breed of terrier developed in 19th-century England for fighting other dogs in pits. The breed
was created by crossing the bulldog, then a longer legged and more agile dog, with a terrier,
possibly the fox terrier or one of the old breeds known as the white English and the
black-and-tan terriers. Once known by such names as bull-and-terrier, half and half, and pit
bull terrier.

Here is an excerpt from an article by Ed Faron:

e tan point pattern is caused by a recessive gene on the

Agouti series gene locus, the

following

are

the

alleles

(variations) that are definitely known to occur in the American Pit

Bull Terrier. There

are also

a couple of

other genes on this

same locus, but they are most

likely not present in this

breed, so

we will

ignore them in this

article to try and keep things

simple.

Agouti locus alleles present in the APBT

A	Dominant Black: produces a solid color (ie.black, chocolate or blue)
ay	Dominant Yellow - Produces reds and buckskins
at	Tan-Point (recessive)- produces solid color with tan 'points'

A dog needs to inherit two copies of the tan-point gene to be a black & tan. If a pup inherits

one copy of the

gene

and one

copy of

the dominant yellow gene, which causes a red or

buckskin coloration, then the dog will be

red or

buckskin, not black

and tan. If

the dog

inherits one copy of the tan-point gene and one of the dominant

black gene,

the result will

be a solid black

dog. Because of

the recessive nature of the tan-point gene, it can

actually

remain

hidden in the gene pool for many

generations without expressing

itself. In the case

of our breed

(where this is not a

common color) this is what often happens,

but it is

important to realize that

when the tan-

point pattern does pop up

it is not some new color

mutation that appeared out of

nowhere, but rather the

manifestation of a gene that has

been present in this breed all throughout the known history of the

American Pit

Bull Terrier.

Though it is impossible

to say for sure where the coloration originated, our best guess

would be that

it came from some sort of

terrier blood

that was introduced many, many years

ago, probably during the early

formation of the

breed in the British Isles.

Actually, part of the reason the color is uncommon is that there has been a distinct

prejudice against it by many

people, either

because they feel it is not a typical Pit Bull color,

or even actually thought it was the result of a

mixed

breeding. The latter

reason

shows an

ignorance of basic genetic principles, because the gene is

recessive, there is

no way you

could breed a

Rottweiler or a

Doberman or Manchester Terrier to a Pit Bull and

get puppies

with the

tan-point markings unless the Pit Bull

was carrying the tan-

point gene too. If in fact

the

black and tan color was not

present in the APBT gene pool, you would have

to breed to

a dog of

another tan-

point breed, and then breed two

offspring from such a breeding back

together to get black &

tan dogs, in the

first

generation you would get no tan-

pointed

offspring.

The tan point gene does not actually create a black & tan animal, the gene itself does not

produce any color but

rather a

pattern of

a solid color with light-colored 'points'. These

'points' always appear in specific places but the

actual size and

distribution of them

somewhat variable. The exact coloration that is produced by the tan-point

gene is

dependant on the

color genes present at other

loci, for instance if the pigmentation is

black, the result

will

be a black & tan, but if the dog's

pigmentation is chocolate or blue

then

the pattern would produce a

chocolate &

tan or a blue & tan, respectively.

Haynes' Moonbeam

Haynes' Oddball

Referring back to the statement above as to the Black & Tan not being a favorable color/marking, here is another example from
PuppyFind.com. Personally, we don't agree with this at all!

Coat: Short and shiny. Any color is acceptable, however red and beige

with

highlights, either

with or without white highlights, is

preferred. Less

favored are

black

and tan, liver, or any

color combination that is more

than 80 percent white.

From the ASPCA: Pet Care: Dog Care website

The Pit Bull Heritage
The pit bull’s ancestors hail from England and were brought to North America by English immigrants. These descendants were bred
from bulldogs, who were selectively bred to participate in an inhumane blood sport called baiting. In this “sport,” a dog was trained to
attack a bull, bear or other large animal around the face and head, and had to hang on without releasing his grip until the animal
became exhausted from fighting and from loss of blood. When animal baiting was banned in the early 1800s, people began to make
their dogs fight against each other instead. As this sport gained popularity, enthusiasts developed a lighter, more athletic dog by
breeding bulldogs with black and tan terriers. Known as “bull and terriers,” these dogs made their way to North America to become the
forefathers of today’s pit bulls.

MORE TO COME SOON!
Help us in our research! Know of an article or want to submit some of your
own research? Please email us!

Some Examples of other Black & Tan Pit Bulls. We have also included some pictures of other
Tan Pointed Pit Bulls

References

1.   http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9069353

2.   http://www.wildsidekennels.com/articles/tanpoint.html

3.   http://www.puppyfind.com/american_pit_bull_terrier.html

4. http://www.aspca.org/site/PageServer?pagename=pets_pitbull

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