Cardigan Colors
by Cathy Ochs-Cline
This is a very complex subject, but I am going to attempt to explain this in as simple a way as possible. I will use pictures and some genetic information. Some of this information is accepted as fact, and some is genetic conjecture from my breeding experience. The mode of inheritance is not known on some color combinations, so I have attempted to make a "best guess." I hope everyone is able to find this information useful.
This article is graphic-intensive, so I have divided it into several pages. Some pages still take a long time to load, so please be patient.
Step 1 -- Colors
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Cardigans come in two basic colors: Red and Black. Red is dominant over black. Cardigans do not have the DOMINANT form of black which causes bi-colors, or pure black and whites. All black Cardigans are tri-color, having either tan or brindle points. Pictured above are the two basic cardigans, one red and one black (tan-point tri-color). These dogs do not have any modifier or dilution factors expressed.